The Azzurra
by Isadorra
Summary: Bon Temps is changing. And not because of vampires or shape-shifters - because of her: the Azzurra. Rated M for sexual content/language. Main characters: OC Isabella & Sam; with Sookie, Eric, Bill, Tara, Jason, Lafayette, etc. Please R/R!
1. Sex on Fire

_Welcome to my newest creation: The Azzurra, a True Blood fanfic. Enjoy, and please feel free to comment. Much love for you, dear readers._

_**Warning**: this chapter contains mature sexual content._

**Chapter One: Sex on Fire  
**

"Sam!"

She screamed his name before she reached his trailer, the sound obscured by the rain slapping against the leaves of the trees. Slipping in the mud as she raced toward the entrance to his trailer, her already bruised limbs smacked against the ground. Ignoring the pain, she pushed herself up and charged toward the door, her fatigued body collapsing against the trailer's entrance.

"Sam!" Fiercely pounding on the door, her body and mind began to fail her when she received no response. _He can't be dead. Not now._

Instead of fully succumbing to her fears, she continued screaming his name. Calling to him served a purpose. She couldn't call to him if he was dead. Her tiny fists pounded on the door with less and less vigor as the tears fell from her eyes like the raindrops around her.

She heard the hurried footsteps before she heard her name. Whipping around toward the sound of his voice, the lightning from above illuminated him. Beaten, but breathing. Alive.

"Izzy!"

Her own breathing stopped as he ran to her, his eyes filled with the passion her shock couldn't express. She gasped as Sam grabbed her, his lips devouring hers as his hands gripped her waist. The force of his entrance shoved her body backward into the door of his trailer, her arms around his neck to pull him closer.

Thrusting his tongue into her mouth, his felt the craving desire explode in his groin, his need for her overpowering all other emotions. Her hands were raking through his damp hair, grasping his locks with fervor.

She broke the kiss to sneak a few breaths of oxygen, her need for him so strong she was breathing in the color of his eyes. "I thought you were dead," she panted. "I thought you …" She trailed off as Sam shook his head, the corners of his mouth curving upward into the slightest of smiles.

Clutching his short, brown tresses, she crushed her lips to his, his moist flesh eager to continue exploring her mouth. Sam's hands slid down the front of her shirt, pausing to greedily grasp her breasts, the fleshy mounds displayed proudly underneath her wet, white t-shirt.

Isabella was the one to continue, her hands descending over his chest to pry open the button to his jeans, her right hand plunging into the denim to massage the growing bulge under his briefs. Groaning, Sam broke their kiss, his eyes squinting shut in pleasure. Pressing her hand deeper into the front of his jeans, he used his remaining free hand to retrieve his keys and force open the door.

Tossing the keys to the floor, Sam returned his lips to her eager mouth as he kicked the door shut behind him. Simultaneously, they used their feet to remove their shoes without breaking their embrace.

The intertwined couple was still moving backward under Sam's force, Isabella finally coming into contact with the wall of his trailer. Moaning as she hit the wall, she forced Sam's pants to his ankles, then slipped her hands under his briefs to allow them to fully explore the hard stalk craving release.

She ravenously stroked the shaft as Sam's lips moved to her neck. His hands moved to her jeans, unbuttoning and unzipping them, then pulling down the denim and panties as far as he could reach without causing her hand to leave his shaft. She sighed at the exposure of herself to him – the man she loved.

But as he grabbed the base of her shirt and began yanking it upward, she had to release her hand from his cock so he could remove her top. Before the shirt hit the floor, his lips and tongue had returned to her neck and collarbone, the warmth of his tongue tasting the flesh before his lips drowned the skin. Isabella removed her own bra, her nipples instantly hardening as Sam's hands grasped them.

After sufficiently massaging the mounds, he grabbed her hand and shoved it back into his briefs. "Don't stop," he moaned, begging her to continue. Her hand continued its eager stroking, the pleasure causing Sam's quick breaths to puncture the air.

Wiggling out of her jeans, Isabella craned her neck to allow Sam direct access to her skin. Her eyes rolled back as Sam's hand trailed downward across her abs and stomach, his middle finger poised to strike. The finger was first to reach her mound, sneaking between the lips and rubbing her clit only once before continuing its journey. With a single, swift motion, he plunged the finger into her warm hole, her resulting moan resonating off the walls.

"Sam … oh _God_, Sam, please … "

Unable to wait any longer, Sam released his cock from his briefs and secured his hands under her knees. Lifting her off the ground, he poised his cock for insertion, waiting only a moment for her to secure her legs and arms around him. He gripped her waist with one hand and used his other to guide the tip of his cock to her inviting hole.

With a fierce grunt, he thrust his shaft inside her wetness. "Fuck." His eyes squeezed shut again, the tight, velvety warmth nearly sending him over edge instantly.

Isabella's head tilted backward in pure pleasure, the hard stalk slipping easily into her hole. Holding her in place, Sam moved away from the wall, Isabella's mouth covering his as he maneuvered through the trailer to his bed.

As Isabella's head hit the pillow near the headboard, she moaned under Sam's weight, the feel of his flesh pressed against hers sending a fresh wave of pleasure to her groin. His penis slipped out of her hole, and Sam immediately missed her tight heat.

Raising her hips in invitation, Isabella moaned again. "No, don't stop. Sam … " Hearing her whimper his name only made his craving worse. Positioning himself between her legs, he pushed her legs apart, then grabbed her waist and dragged her hole toward his cock.

His shaft dove once again into the warm wetness, the sensation somehow even better than he remembered. Sam unknowingly let out a loud groan, the thunder outside almost matching his sound. He began pistoning into her, her back arching in pleasure beneath him. As she spread her legs wider, Sam took the invitation to let his cock rule his mind. Gripping her waist in place, he held her steady as he rocketed in and out of her, the juices coating his shaft making the motion so simple, so erotic.

Panting with each thrust, Sam felt the explosion coming. Building and building as her walls tightened around him. She was close, too, her legs quivering on either side of him. The room spun as he neared his peak, her mounting groans finally matching his own.

With one, final thrust, he slammed into her, her legs quaking beneath him as his cum filled her, punching into her with the same ferocity as his thrusts. He held his cock deep in her hole as her orgasm completed its cycle, sending waves of pleasure from groin to head to toe.

Sam finally removed his throbbing member, collapsing onto the bed beside her. Her lips covered his instantly, but not with the same erotic urgency as before. This time, her kisses were slow and sweet, her tongue delicately tracing his bottom lip.

Exhausted, he wrapped one of his legs around hers and moved his head so they were sharing the same pillow. Kissing her forehead, Sam closed his eyes and inhaled the sensual scent of her chocolate-colored tresses. Snuggling into his chest, she closed her eyes and joined him in sleep within seconds.

*****

Isabella awoke at 3:28 a.m., the rain outside still slapping against the windows. Sam was in a deep sleep, his slow, deliberate breaths calming her in a way she couldn't even describe.

Creeping out of bed, she walked toward the kitchen, the quick flashes of lightening shining through the windows and guiding her way. Retrieving a glass from a cabinet, she poured herself some water from the sink and sipped the cool refreshment.

Her mind wandered as she stared out of the window in front of her into the rain. She never intended on staying on Bon Temps. It was an accident that she arrived here. But was everything else an accident? Sam? Jason? Sookie and Bill? Tara and Layfayette? How could it be an accident? It was as if her presence had sent Bon Temps into a chaotic tempest of events. She had changed it permanently. And it would continue to change.

What many would assume was a gift she labeled as her curse. That's why she had been running. But how was Bon Temps the finish line? It could only be because of Sam. Sam, who didn't even see her at first, not in the way she saw him. But he did now. He belonged to her, in every way a man could.

As she turned her head in the direction of the bed, smiling at his nude form, the window shattered beside her, an unknown object fiercely striking her head. Flying backward, blood obscured her vision of several figures entering the trailer. As her head hit the wall, the world around her became silent.


	2. Sparks

A note for my readers: Although I claim to be a writer, I cannot summon the words to express how appreciative I am for your positive response to my new story, _The Azzurra_. This was merely an idea in my head that has now exploded into something more, so I am so grateful for the positive response it received. So thank you, _thank you_ for your reviews. Please feel free to comment more! I hope this chapter does not disappoint.

**Chapter Two – Sparks**

_Four months earlier …_

Her journey had become monotonous.

Although she had to admit, Bon Temps was the change she craved. It was as if the bitter cold and constant movement of her former New York City home had been soaked up into the sweet, saturated Bon Temps air. The noise was still there, but it was in the form of breezes whistling through willow trees and the persistent buzzing of an assortment of insects.

Leaving New York had been easy. It was figuring out where she was going that was hard. She had fled south, her contentment with the different scenery masking her anxiety over her unwritten future.

Arriving in Bon Temps had been an accident – purely a wrong turn. Seeking a hotel room to sleep for the night, she instead found Bon Temps. Its alluring, home-town world beckoned her instead of making her turn around.

Nature was breathing around her as Isabella stepped out of her old, black Mustang, her eyes surveying Merlotte's Bar and Grill from afar. As she walked toward the entrance from the outskirts of the parking lot, the thumping music adhered to her heartbeat like a metronome.

Isabella pulled the door open, immediately causing a silence to take over the establishment. Only the music continued as she was greeted with the probing eyes of each patron. She was used to this – the spotlight following her as she walked to the bar.

Still holding her tray weighted down with food, Sookie Stackhouse didn't notice the silence. Merlotte's suddenly grew to an enormous volume, the thoughts of each person intermingling as they streamed through her mind … _what a body … get a look at those legs! Her boobs, too! Shit, I don't know where to look …looks like some hot, Italian firebird … if I had hips like that … aw, hell, what I wouldn't give to be inside of _that_ … fuck me, Freddie! Would you get a look at her! …great, that's all I need, another piece of ass for my husband to drool over instead of me … look at her eyes – like blue diamonds …_

Sookie watched the woman walk to the bar, her head facing forward to avoid each gaze. Despite the thoughts she was now trying to block, Sookie felt just as enchanted by the woman. Her long, brown hair was flawless, the chocolate strands shimmering with life as each footstep captured it in a different light. Quickly shaking her head back and forth, Sookie could no longer handle the voices.

"What's the matter, y'all? Ain't you ever seen a woman before?" Sookie weaved through tables to finish her delivery of her tray of food. The woman glanced in her direction as she seated herself at the bar, and Sookie offered her a smile. She nodded in return, a quick display of appreciation.

"Somethin' I can get for you?"

Isabella returned her attention to the bar, her eyes meeting another woman dressed in a pink tank top and jean capris. Her eyebrows were raised inquisitively, a toothpick dangling from the side of her mouth.

"Um, just a diet soda. Whatever you have is fine." Isabella's eyes shifted to the left as the bartender turned around to get Isabella's drink. A tall, blonde man had sat in the seat next to her, a grin displayed prominently on his handsome face. His legs spread wide, he leaned closer to her, his eyes greedily scanning her body.

"Are you new in town?" he asked, his voice awe-filled and curious.

"Nope, just passing through," she replied, staring at the bartender's back.

"I'm Jason. Stackhouse. Jason Stackhouse. And if there's anything I can do to get you to stay, you just tell me—"

"God damn, Jason, shut your damn mouth before she leaves without paying for this." The bartender placed a clear glass filled with cola on a napkin in front of Isabella.

"What, Tara? Bon Temps hasn't seen anything this pretty since the Cajun Chili Cook-off. Remember that farmer's daughter from Pineville? Hot damn—"

"No, I do not remember no farmer's daughter from Pineville. Jesus, there's more thinking done in the front of your pants than in your head."

Isabella laughed, the sound extinguishing a portion of her anxiety. "Thanks for the drink," she said to Tara.

"Next one's on me," Jason announced, leaning closer to Isabella, his eyes devouring her bronzed skin.

"Thanks, but I won't be staying long. I just—"

Isabella paused mid-sentence at the appearance of a new body, the masculine scent filling her nostrils and causing her to sit upright in her chair.

"Sookie, you know I don't like it when he's here," he said, his irritated voice lingering in the air. "It makes the customers uncomfortable." The man was carrying a large case of beer, but he dropped it on the counter to turn around to face Sookie, the glass clinking in retort.

"Are you sure it doesn't make _you_ uncomfortable, Sam? Or is it just the customers?" Sookie's ponytail shook furiously behind her head, the blonde locks momentarily disturbed from their perfect placement. Sam ignored her comment and began stocking the refrigerator behind her with fresh, unopened beers. "And has it ever occurred to you that Bill is a customer, too?"

"Really, when was the last time he ate something?" Sam asked, whipping around from the refrigerator and shoving his face into Sookie's. He lowered his voice to a dangerous timbre and pointed his finger at Sookie's shoulder. "And you don't count."

Sookie slapped Sam's hand away from her and stormed past Tara across the bar. Immediately regretting his words, Sam hung his head, a sigh escaping his mouth.

Isabella eyed him closely, her limbs both curious and lustful. Although conversation in Merlotte's had resumed, Isabella now owned the wandering eyes of each patron.

Except Sam. He continued the repetitive motion of picking up a pair of beers with each hand, the glass clinking as he lifted, then depositing them in the cool confines of the refrigerator. While everyone watched Isabella, she watched him, sampling his muscular arms, how his ass looked in his jeans as he bent over, how his shirt stretched to conform around his trim upper body.

Finally, he turned around, and his blue eyes crashed into hers. The effect caused her heart to race, several bolts of electricity shooting outward from her heart. One blasted to her groin, causing a parade of pleasure to march through the organ and stimulate each of her senses. Another shot to her head, sending her brain waves into a cloudy frenzy of what to do, what to say.

A few strands of sandy-blonde hair fell near his eyes, causing her fingers to twitch in desire to touch them. A thin, scruffy beard only enhanced his masculinity, the stubble stretching around his thin lips.

Like she had done a thousand times before, Isabella trained her eyes to focus on Sam, the color from her blue orbs streaming outward to embrace his neck. _Ipnotizzare_, her kind called it. Coupled with her appearance, her mesmerizing capabilities always got her exactly what she wanted.

But to her disappointment, Sam merely nodded at her in greeting before grabbing a rag, tossing it over his shoulder, then turning around to dry glasses on the counter.

Isabella's eyebrows furrowed. _Ipnotizzare_ had never failed her before.

_Am I losing my touch?_

Turning to Jason in frustration, Isabella repeated the same ocular embrace she had attempted with Sam. She watched the blue rays of light run through Jason's hair and seep into his nostrils. Almost instantly, his face softened as he breathed in her scent, his eyes glazing over as the desire dominated his body.

"Can I please take you home?" He had leaned forward in awe, his right hand reaching for her thigh. Isabella now felt more confused. _Ipnotizzare_ worked on Jason but not Sam – how was that possible?

"No, I do believe I will have the pleasure of taking her home."

Isabella's head twirled to her right to meet the source of the voice, and a tidal wave of thoughts filled her head. The eyes, the skin, the build … _vampire._ She felt the air in her lungs, but she had somehow forgotten how to breathe. She was drowning in her own fear.

"What's the matter, sweetheart?" The vampire moved beside her, his left arm sliding around her chair. Isabella felt the anxiety building inside of her, the discomfort beginning its climb to the peak of explosion. As the vampire moved dangerously close to her neck, she felt its breath on her skin. He greedily inhaled her scent, his eyes already devouring the luscious veins in her neck. "Y'know, once a vamp gets a taste of you, you'll never be able to stop thinking about us—"

Isabella felt the air become wedged in her throat as the vampire's hand brushed a long chunk of hair away from her face to expose her flesh.

"Hey, back off. She's not interested." Sam was standing in front of them, his eyes shooting the vampire a warning. His eyes shifted to meet Sam's, but he did not move. "You will not aggravate my customers." Sam's voice lowered, its tone dangerous. "Back off, Logan." Grinning, the vampire Logan pushed off of Isabella's chair and walked away.

Isabella's eyes followed the vampire as he swaggered across the bar. "You let vampires in here?" she asked, her question more of a statement of surprise than an inquiry.

"Yeah. Not exactly by choice. There aren't many – Logan's just one of the more aggressive ones." Sam put his hands on the edge of the bar and leaned toward her. Although his presence was exactly what she had craved moments ago, her throat was still closed off from precious oxygen.

Shooting up from her chair to escape, Isabella darted past the row of barstools and nearly collided into Sookie Stackhouse.

"I'm sorry," Isabella offered, her eyes shimmering with the tears she would not let fall from her eyes. She had grabbed Sookie's elbows to steady her.

"It's okay," Sookie replied, her ears filling with Isabella's panicked thoughts.

"Where's your bathroom?"

"Over there," she pointed. "Right around the corner."

"Thank you." Isabella hurried in the direction of Sookie's finger, rounded the corner and shoved open the restroom door. Locking herself in the last stall, she lowered the toilet seat and sat down, her hands pressing against the walls to prevent them from crushing her.

It wasn't what the vampire had done. No. She could handle the irritating flirtation. It was what he had said: _once a vamp gets a taste of you, you'll never be able to stop thinking about us …_ He was right.

When the air was streaming regularly through her lungs, Isabella left the restroom into the deserted back hallway of Merlotte's. At the end of the hallway was an office, its door ajar about two feet to reveal its cluttered insides. Isabella walked toward it, a painting on the wall catching her attention – a dog sitting protectively beside a young girl. Isabella's hand was on the door to push it open when a voice behind her startled her.

"Can I help you with something?"

Isabella jumped and turned around, her limbs tingling at the sight of Sam. His eyes were inquisitive.

"I'm sorry. I'm really sorry. I just, um …" Isabella stepped away from the office, knowing she had intruded where she did not belong. "I didn't mean to pry." She sighed, pausing in front of Sam, his gaze still curious.

"You all right?"

"I'm just a little lost, I guess," she responded with a laugh, her hand awkwardly raking through her brown tresses.

"Bar's that way," Sam said, pointing to where she had come from, his eyebrow raising.

"No, I mean, I don't really know where-I mean—" She cut herself off and started laughing at her bumbling words. Her ancestors would be appalled at her blatant shaming of her kind's constant grace and beauty.

"You sure you're all right?" Sam asked, his eyes now more concerned than skeptical.

"I'm fine," she responded, her smile drawing out Sam's grin. "Thank you for what you did before. For your help." Before demonstrating any additional foolishness, Isabella turned around and walked away from Sam. Passing Sookie on the way back to her seat at the bar, Isabella thanked her again.

Sookie retrieved the drinks Tara had made her from the bar, then turned around to deliver them to her table. Bill eyed her from his table in the corner, secluded from the other patrons. Still irritated with Sam for suggesting she kick him out, she flashed Bill an adoring smile before greeting her customers.

Assuming Lafayette would have her order for table three ready, Sookie traipsed toward the kitchen. But before taking five steps, she froze as if someone had delivered a sucker punch to her gut.

_We'll follow her to the parking lot … Jeff should take her from behind. He's the strongest ... Rudy and I will knock her out … shouldn't take long … then its dicks swinging. If each of us takes a turn, that doesn't give us much time …_

Panicked, Sookie's breaths automatically increased. Looking at the group of three men to her right, she felt ill as their eyes probed the new girl, each of them silently plotting to rape her.

Darting through the tables and past the restrooms, Sookie bolted into Sam's office. Sam immediately stood up at the sight of her white face.

"Sookie, what's the matter with you?" He grabbed hold of her shoulders, squeezing them tightly.

"The new girl. The pretty one. These three creeps out there are planning to rape her in the parking lot."

"What? How do you—"

"I heard them, Sam! We have to do something!" Sookie retreated from Sam's office and hurried back to the bar, Sam faithfully following close behind. Sookie scanned the bar for the woman, a hard lump forming in her throat when she couldn't find her. Even worse, the three men had disappeared, too.

"Where is she?" Sookie asked Tara, her agitated voice matching her wide eyes.

"Who?" Tara asked.

"The woman. With brown hair. The one everyone was looking at before."

"She left just a minute ago. Gave me a nice tip."

"Oh my God." Sookie flinched for the door, but Sam grabbed her arm.

"You stay here. I mean it, Sookie. Stay put. I'll take care of this."

Sam bolted for the exit, his hands shoving open the door with little effort. The cool, night air swept over his skin as he jogged outside, his eyes and ears scanning the parking lot for any sign of distress or danger. He hoped Sookie was wrong, that the woman had merely left.

Still jogging near the outskirts of his property, Sam finally heard something other than singing crickets. Footsteps. More than 100 feet off to his left. Creeping around a large willow tree, Sam saw the three men closing in on the woman. Lined up in a row less than twenty feet behind her, they were ready to attack. A glint of light displayed the knife in the hand of the center attacker.

Before Sam could intervene, the men dove forward for their assault, the knife leading the battle.

Isabella darted sideways, the knife's blade slicing open her forearm. The pain enraged her already agitated nerves, and her body's natural response took hold of her limbs. Her elbow flew backward into the nose of one of the attackers, the crack of his broken nose filling the air as the blood poured from his nostrils. The force of her blow blurred his vision, forcing him to stumble backward into a tree trunk, the blackness of unconsciousness taking over as his head collided with the bark.

Clenching her fist, her right arm punched through the air and came into direct contact with another assailant's jaw. Yelping in pain, the punch forced him to fall into the ground, the unforgiving earth cracking open his skull. Isabella turned her attention to the third man, her left foot already flying backward into his stomach. Gasping for oxygen, he soared backward through the air at least twenty feet, his body leaving a small crater in the dirt as he collapsed into the ground.

The damage she caused took less than three seconds, barely enough time for Sam to enter her line of sight.

Clenching her bleeding arm, Isabella looked in the direction of the hurried footsteps. Sam's heavy breaths were evident through the swift rising and falling of his short-sleeved flannel shirt. His blue eyes showed shock and suspicion as he looked from the three men to the mildly injured, beautiful woman. Breathless, he finally spoke.

"What are you?"


	3. Lost

_Thanks again to all who have read this, and especially to those who have commented. Much love readers, and enjoy!_

**Chapter Three – Lost**

Isabella stared back at Sam, his inquisitive eyes demanding an answer. He looked skeptical. Almost angry. She shook her head, her eyes pleading for him to ignore what he had seen.

"Oh my God, what happened?" Sookie was running toward Isabella, Bill close behind, surveying the three bodies and the woman in the center of them. Sookie bypassed Sam's outstretched hand and ran to the woman. "Lord in heaven, what did they do to you?" Sookie tore the bandana from around her neck and quickly tied it tightly around Isabella's forearm. "And what did you do to them?"

Wincing in pain, Isabella tried to hold her arm still as Sookie secured the bandana. The cotton was already soaked in Isabella's blood, the deep cut throbbing in response.

"Thank you," Isabella said softly, "for being so nice."

Sookie smiled in response. "I'm Sookie, by the way. Sookie Stackhouse."

"Isabella." She groaned again, her eyes flicking to her right at Sam then back to the saturated bandana. The pain shot from her arm to each of her limbs, her heart pumping furiously to keep up with the rapid blood loss. Coupled with Sam's untrusting eyes, she felt as if the thick Bon Temps air was seeping into her head. "I'm getting dizzy," she said quietly.

"The cut's too deep," Sookie told her. "I don't know if I can stop the bleeding."

"May I see your arm?" Bill reached for Isabella, but in the brief moment he extended his hand, Isabella recognized the unmistakable characteristics of a vampire. Dodging his touch, Isabella stepped away from Bill, her eyebrows narrowing in anger. She staggered sideways, as if a fistful of air punched her in the face.

… _not letting it happen again … too close … he'll hurt me … bite me … turn me …_

"No, Bill's not like that!" Sookie said abruptly.

Isabella froze, her eyes locking on Sookie's. _Could she hear me?_ "What did you say?"

"Sookie, don't." Sam had moved to Isabella's side, his hand outstretched, silently commanding Sookie to retreat from Isabella's head.

"Did she just — did you just read my mind?" Isabella said quickly, her head shifting from Sam to Sookie.

"I'm sorry," she said to Isabella before looking at her boss. "Sam, I just—"

"I can heal you, Isabella." Bill said, interrupting Sookie and stepping toward the dark-haired beauty. "It won't hurt."

"No." Isabella glared at Bill. In her anger and daze, she took another stumble backward. Pain pierced through her body, causing another groan to escape her lips. Sam's hand appeared on her waist and steadied her, the fog quickly draining from her head when their eyes connected. The effect startled her.

"Bill, just call the police. Sookie, run inside and get something else to stop the bleeding." Sam ignored the irritated glare on Bill's face and turned toward Isabella as Sookie ran back inside Merlotte's. "You hurt anywhere else?" he asked her.

Isabella shook her head, her hand clutching the bandana tightly around her arm. Sam's eyes scanned her face, as if the answer to all of his questions was written on her cheek. Sensing his distrust, Isabella stepped aside and turned away from him. She took a few steps toward the solitude of darkness in the trees ahead of her, hoping he wouldn't probe her with questions.

"You should sit down."

His words made her turn back around, but she did not sit. "You can go back inside if you want. I can take care of myself."

"Yeah, I'm sure you can."

Biting her lip, Isabella immediately picked up on his accusatory tone. It would only waste time to wish he had never seen the severity of her strength. Since she could not explain her secrets to him, she responded by feeding her body's desire to flee and retreating in the direction of the bar.

"Is there any reason I should be worried about letting you back in my bar?" Sam held his breath as Isabella stopped and turned around to look at him.

Her voice was quiet, her words caressing the air as they escaped her lips. "I'm not a bad person."

Sam watched Isabella return to the entrance of his bar. But she did not go inside. Still holding her arm, she glanced in Bill's direction, his raspy voice summoning the police. No doubt they would arrive shortly.

Everything about Isabella was curious. She looked different, smelled different, acted different … even walked different, as if the air around her carried her, thankful to be graced with her presence.

Sam wanted to shift forms – to be near her and examine her without her knowing. But before he could take two steps in her direction, Sookie exited the bar with what she could find of clean towels.

"I'm sorry. This is all we have," she told Isabella, holding out the cloth like an offering.

"Thanks. These will be fine," she replied as she took the towels from Sookie. _'I'm not a bad person' … fucking ridiculous thing to say._ "I'm sorry about your bandana."

Sookie cocked her head at the intermingling of Isabella's words and thoughts. She watched the stranger unravel the bandana, blood immediately oozing from the three-inch slice on her forearm. Her face contorted into a grimace as she tied the makeshift bandage around the wound.

"Would you mind tightening this for me?" she asked Sookie as she held up her arm, a strip of blood already soaking into the towel. "I know it's gross. It's just-it's clotting some, but not enough."

Sookie nodded and stepped toward the woman to tightly secure the towel. "I've seen worse, trust me."

The two women exchanged a brief smile as the sounds of sirens filled the night, blue and red lights bouncing off the walls of Merlotte's. Isabella was immediately ushered toward a pair of cops, questions overflowing out of their mouths as the three attackers were lugged to an ambulance.

She told the police what they wanted to hear, the majority of which was the truth: the men attacked her, and she defended herself. The source of her strength? That was where she bent the truth. _Martial arts defense training_, she explained_. I come from New York – women would be insane to not take a defense class there._ While being questioned, a paramedic properly cleaned and bandaged her wound, then administered an injection of anti-inflammatory medication to combat infection and dull the pain. Isabella refused to go to the hospital. _I've been though worse_, she thought.

Sookie, Bill and Sam were questioned, too, although the only person who could provide any valuable details was Sam. Isabella's anxiety heightened as she watched Sam talk with Sheriff Dearborne, his hands resting casually on his hips. He could allude to her inhuman strength and start a new fire of questions fueled by his skepticism. But he didn't. He merely confirmed her story, never mentioning that he saw her send one of the attackers soaring at least twenty feet through the air.

After almost two hours of questioning, the last of the police cars left Merlotte's parking lot, taking away the patrons' unexpected evening entertainment.

Facing Sookie, Isabella sighed, her eyes darting to the vampire at her side before settling on Sookie. "Thank you again for your help. I wish there was something I could do for you."

"Don't mention it," Sookie replied, offering the woman a smile.

"Why don't you take off for the night – everyone left with the cops," Sam interjected as he approached the threesome. "I'll close up with Tara."

"I should um, I should hit the road, too. I should leave before anything else happens to me." The yawn that exited her mouth stifled her mild laughter.

"Are you sure you don't want to stay the night?" Sookie asked. "You're clearly tired, and you've been through a lot."

"You should not be driving after the amount of blood you've lost," Bill added, receiving an icy stare from Isabella in response.

"I don't have a place to stay—"

"You could stay with me and Tara. I mean, hell, we have a huge house with all these empty rooms. You can spend the night and be on your way in the morning."

"I couldn't possibly impose—"

"You won't be imposing." Sookie shook her head for emphasis. "You're more than welcome."

Isabella sighed, realizing the offer was more than tempting. "If you're sure you're okay with it, then, I would be very grateful to you."

"No problem. Let me just grab my things and tell Tara, and I'll be right back out." Sookie hurried back into the bar, Sam at her heels.

"Sookie, are you sure that's a good idea? You don't even know this woman," Sam argued.

"Are you actually questioning my judgment?" she asked as she dodged into Sam's office to grab her purse. "In case you're forgetting, I can read people's thoughts. That woman is scared and alone in an unfamiliar place, and she has no where to go."

"You don't understand. She's different, Sookie."

"Funny. I wouldn't think _you_ would be the one to judge someone for being different." Securing her purse under her arm, Sookie took Sam's silence as her opportunity to leave.

Outside, Isabella ignored Bill, standing with her back to him several feet away. Her clear dislike of him elicited an irritated stare from the vampire.

"May I ask why you are so distasteful of my kind?" he asked softly, his eyes narrow.

"No, you may not. In fact," she turned around to face him, "I would prefer if you did not speak to me at all."

Like a bolt of electricity, Bill shot from his stationary position and appeared again mere inches from Isabella's face. "You have no reason to treat me with such poor respect."

"I didn't think I was showing you any respect at all."

Bill's fangs erupted from his teeth, the white daggers poised to pounce. Isabella's heart was first to react, the organ pumping furiously inside her chest. Only her sudden intake of breath gave away her fear.

A low rumble escaped Bill's throat as he examined her face, but the sound suddenly ended as a breeze snaked between them. "You smell … different," he said softly, his fangs retreating. The aroma teased his nostrils, causing his features to soften, the anger melting away with the breeze. Not wanting to frighten her more than he already had, he took several steps backward, his eyes still examining her with curiosity.

"Y'all ready?" Sookie asked as she exited the bar. "You can follow me in your car if you're okay with driving." Isabella agreed. She retreated to her vehicle, feeling Bill's eyes on her as she walked away from him.

The drive to the Stackhouse home only took a few minutes, the white house appearing like a beautiful fortress. Surrounded by an abundance of flora and a curtain of willow trees, the house looked like a fantasy.

"Come on in," Sookie said with a grin, holding the door open for Isabella. Sookie and Bill followed her inside, slightly amused by her awe.

The house smelled like fresh linen, each decoration, each object serving a purpose. Above all, the house looked lived in. Love had made the house blossom, as if it were a living, breathing being designed to support and nurture all who entered it.

"Your home is beautiful," she told Sookie, resting a large, black bag on the floor. "I mean, it's sort of indescribable, really. I've never seen anything like it."

"Thanks. It was my Gran's. She'd be so happy to hear you say that." A quick tour followed her entrance, officially starting her introduction to the home. Bill lingered in the kitchen as the two women walked through the house, their mild conversation also serving as an introduction to each other.

Sookie offered Isabella a room upstairs to sleep in – her old room. She couldn't contain her smile when she saw how Isabella seemed to love it as much as she had. Even as she entered, she remembered how the pastel blue walls wrapped her in serenity as she walked inside, the white furniture adding a simple elegance.

"If you need anything, I'll be right downstairs. Tara will be home in an hour or so, so don't be scared if you hear someone come in. She'll be in the room right next to you."

"Thank you again, Sookie. Really. For everything. I didn't think there were people this nice in the world anymore."

"Glad I could change your mind." Sookie backed out of the bedroom, leaving Isabella with a smile before she shut the door.

*****

Isabella had been lying in bed awake for more than an hour. Tara had already been home for an hour, most likely already sleeping next door. In fact, the whole house was sleeping, sighing softly like the rest of its occupants.

She exhaled loudly and threw the sheets off of her, moving her legs until her bare feet were touching the soft, white carpet. The combination of the heat, her throbbing arm, the unfamiliarity of Bon Temps and her unfamiliar future, prevented her from sleeping.

Tiptoeing downstairs in her black camisole and white shorts, she slowly maneuvered through the rooms of the foreign house until she reached the front door. Exiting quietly, she was greeted by a symphony of crickets, all of them swooning to her in their own rhythms.

Sitting down on the front steps, she suddenly felt a combination of guilt and confusion. The world around her felt so harmonious, but she was truly alone. Sookie had opened up her life to a stranger, offering her a bed and warmth of a home. But Isabella felt like an imposter to her and her vampire boyfriend. Even so, it felt right to be here, but could she actually stay? And if she didn't stay, where would she go?

A rustle in the trees about fifty feet away made her look up. A brown and white dog emerged, trotting toward the house as if it was coming home for the night.

"Hey, buddy," Isabella said softly as the dog approached her. The dog politely stopped in front of her and sat down, its brown ears perked up. She held out her hand to the animal, allowing it to smell her before her hand lightly scratched its left ear. The dog cocked its head at her touch, its eyes narrowing to content slits as she caressed the soft fur.

She let out a quiet laugh. "Guess I hit a sweet spot, huh? Yeah, well, don't get too attached to me, buddy. I don't think I'm staying." She paused as the dog stood up, then abruptly sat down again. "I don't really know where I'm going either." She stared beyond the yard and into the dark unknown of the wall of trees surrounding the house. "I don't really seem to serve a purpose anywhere." Her eyes glistened with tears as the statement exited her mouth. "I have all of this history, this other life inside of me. It's supposed to make everything perfect, but … it's only made me afraid. It's only made me feel … alone."

The dog leaned forward and rested its chin on her leg, eliciting a quiet laugh from Isabella. She sniffed and wiped a solitary tear off of her cheek, then rested her hand on the dog's head. The fur was soft against her skin, its whiskers tickling her thigh.

Using her thumb to slowly stroke the silky fur between the dog's eyes, she smiled at the affectionate animal. "Thanks for listening, buddy." As she stood up, the dog removed its chin from her leg, its tongue briefly lapping at the air before standing up with her. The dog let out a quiet whine, the sound forcing Isabella to return her attention to it.

"What?" she asked the dog, her mind quickly mocking her for speaking to the animal as if it would respond. It trotted up the steps and sat down in front of the door. "I can't let you in, if that's what you're thinking." The dog responded by pawing at the door, its claws scraping against the wood. "It's not my house, buddy. And as far as I can tell, you don't belong to Sookie. And I hope to God you don't belong to Bill."

The dog let out a combination of sounds – a mesh of a whine, a groan and a growl. Isabella giggled in response. "Go on home, dog. Maybe I'll see you again sometime."

Looking at Isabella, the dog lapped at the air once more, then ran down the front steps. She watched the dog retreat into the mass of trees, then opened the front door, her body colliding with Bill's as she entered the house.


	4. Don't Panic

_Author's note: A special thanks to Raging Raven and Mrs. Spicy for your reviews/comments - I hope this chapter doesn't disappoint!_

**Chapter Four – Don't Panic**

Briefly looking up at Bill's oddly apathetic gaze, Isabella slid past him into the house, instantly irritated by his presence.

"You have fun spying on me?" Her legs were aiming for the stairs to return to the solitude of her room. But before her toes could press into the first step, a flash of color solidified into the form of Vampire Bill in front of her, preventing her escape. "Ugh, don't do that." Her harsh whisper seemed lost within the huge house.

"I did not mean to eavesdrop." Bill's voice was apologetic, but his expression didn't change.

Isabella felt her muscles tighten in response to his close proximity. Bill noticed, too. When she did not respond, Bill took her silence as permission to continue speaking.

"I merely heard a voice outside and came to the door to inspect." He eyed her closely, watching her eyes avoid his gaze. "I am sorry that you are upset."

Isabella flinched when Bill's right arm raised, his hand offering her a clean, white tissue. Embarrassed by his knowledge of her tearful outburst, she grasped the tissue and quickly wiped away the remains of her tear-stained face. "Thank you," she muttered, hoping her words did not drip with as much disdain as they usually did when she addressed Bill.

Attempting to focus on the chorus of crickets outside, Isabella hoped their conversation was over. Bill had hoped it was just beginning.

"May I ask you a question?" he asked, moving away from his stationary position in front of her. He stepped to her side, then slowly circled her figure until he reached her right side. His careful, deliberate movements reminded her of a stalking predator.

"I suppose," she replied cautiously.

"In the parking lot earlier tonight … when I startled you—"

"You want to know why I smell different." She turned her body to face the vampire, his face showing slight exhilaration that she understood his curiosity.

"Yes." He nodded politely, his head eagerly leaning forward.

Sighing, she offered him a taste of her history, but only enough for him to nibble on. "Your kind … is very attracted to me. Many vampires often want to taste my blood. Sometimes more than that." Her voice softened at her last statement, her mind attempting to block the countless times vampires had craved her, some more aggressive than others.

"Yes, you smell very different from a human. Had I not fed on Sookie yesterday, I would have been quite tempted to sample your blood—"

"Please, stop talking." She held her hand out to silence him, the visual of Bill greedily devouring the blood from a kind, friendly person like Sookie causing her stomach to churn.

A twitch of a smile appeared on Bill's face, but he quickly removed it when he realized she was legitimately offended. "I have one more question for you, Isabella."

Her piercing blue eyes looked into his, expecting his final query to be an unpleasant one.

"Are you human?" Bill stepped toward her and took a long, deep inhalation of her scent once more, his upper lip twitching in a somewhat sensual satisfaction.

Isabella immediately took a step backward and planted her foot on the first step to escape to the upper level. Turning away from him, she decided not to answer. But she thought of the kind people she had met tonight – Sookie in particular. Surely Bill would tell her of their conversation tonight. What would he tell her about this question? And what would Sookie say to Tara? Or to Sam?

Pivoting on the step, she turned to face Bill. "I'm human, yes. But there are … features about me that are not." As she turned away, Bill caught a whiff of her scent as her hair flowed through the air.

"Is that why you were able to fight those men tonight?" he asked as she was escalating.

Pausing halfway up the stairs, Isabella turned around. "You said you only had one more question for me." She offered him the slightest of smiles before she continued up the stairs, entered her room and locked herself within.

***

Sleep had been difficult in Sookie's home.

The unfamiliar sounds combined with her elevated anxiety left Isabella wide awake at six in the morning. As the morning sun pierced through the east window, an array of birds took over for the crickets for the next group of singers.

Grabbing her bag, Isabella quickly showered and dressed in light jeans and a black tank top, her long, chocolate tresses remaining damp in the humidity. Tiptoeing downstairs, her car keys in one hand and her purse in the other, she decided to journey to downtown Bon Temps to surprise Sookie and Tara with breakfast to thank them for their hospitality.

Although she was unsure of where to find a grocery store, not to mention what she'd buy when she got there, Isabella was confident Bon Temps was small enough for her to navigate.

Within minutes, she spotted a Super Save-a-Bunch. Its name gave away nothing about the store, but it looked large enough to have groceries. Since it had just opened at six, the store was quiet and nearly empty, and she was able to locate a few worthy items within minutes. Breezing through the checkout, she was back at Sookie and Tara's house by 7:20.

With its inhabitants still silent as she entered the home, Isabella carried her purchases to the kitchen and began her search for the appropriate cooking accoutrement. Within the next hour, she was preparing an assortment of foods, the delicious aromas bursting from the kitchen and filling the entire house.

The delicious scent lured Sookie downstairs in a pink nightshirt and white, cotton shorts. Her mouth was agape as she entered the kitchen, her eyes already devouring the food.

"Oh my word, what have you been doing?" Sookie asked.

"I had to thank you in some way," Isabella answered. "So I thought I'd make you and Tara breakfast. And completely mess up your kitchen in the process." The women giggled together as Sookie walked toward the kitchen table. "Please, sit." Isabella gestured for Sookie to sit down, which she immediately did, a permanent grin on her face.

"Okay, so I have banana pancakes, chocolate chip pancakes, sausage links … um, bacon's currently frying, and eggs are on the way if you want them," Isabella rattled off, pointing to a full carton of eggs with a spatula.

"How about one of everything?" Sookie asked with a laugh.

"Comin' right up." With precise movements, Isabella assembled a plate of food for Sookie and poured her a fresh cup of coffee.

"You didn't have to do all this," Sookie said kindly as Isabella placed the place of food in front of her.

"You let me stay in your home. It's the least I could do." Isabella sat down at the table beside Sookie. Crossing her legs, she grinned and took a sip from her own cup of coffee. "And I swear I'll clean it all up."

"Gosh, are you sure you don't want to move in?" Sookie joked before taking her first bite of a banana pancake. "Deee-licious," she added as she savored her first taste.

"What in the hell is going on in here?" Tara entered the kitchen with a slight smile, her long, black hair pulled back into a neat ponytail. Her eyes surveyed the buffet with partial shock and partial confusion.

"Isabella made us breakfast," Sookie answered.

"I can see that," she responded, her eyes still scanning the room as she shuffled into the kitchen.

Sookie looked from Tara to Isabella and let out a quick laugh. "You got Tara up before noon after a worknight. That's an accomplishment in itself." Tara smiled and gave Sookie a playful push before sitting at the table opposite Isabella.

Like she had done with Sookie, Isabella assembled a plate of food for Tara, full of pancakes and bacon, then poured her a tall glass of orange juice to drink. After both women were served, Isabella took a small stack of pancakes for herself, then joined them at the table.

Soon the presence of feminine laughter took over the kitchen as the three women became more acquainted with one another. When Tara learned Isabella had obtained all of the food from Super Save-a-Bunch, she jumped into hilarious stories of her own career there and the downs of working in retail.

Their job discussion moved from Super Save-a-Bunch to Merlotte's – both Tara and Sookie's current place of employment. Their stories included the time Sookie "accidentally" drowned Andy Bellefleur with a chocolate malt and the time five out-of-town women tried to coerce Sam into doing a striptease on the bar. As her mouth began to hurt from smiling so much, Isabella reflected on the last time she had felt this comfortable in the world. The answer, she soon realized, was difficult to find.

Sam, it seemed, knew he had come up in conversation. When the doorbell rang just after ten o'clock, Tara left the kitchen to answer the door. Her boss was on the other side.

"Sam, I see enough of you at work," Tara joked, stepping aside to allow him in.

"Thanks, Tara. Nice to see you, too." Sam smirked at her, then walked toward the sound of feminine voices in the kitchen.

Morning, ladies," he said with a smile.

Isabella lowered her coffee cup from her lips to allow her eyes full view of him. Were it not for the pancakes, she would have wanted _him_ for breakfast.

"Hey, Sam," Sookie replied, contorting in her chair to see him behind her. "What brings you here?"

"You dropped this last night," Sam said to Sookie, holding up a small, red wallet. "Thought you might need it."

"I didn't even know it was missing," Sookie got up from her chair to take the wallet from him. "Thanks so much for bringing it over."

"Sure. Anytime." Sam nodded and smiled at her, admiring the frame of her face. Even after a night of sleep, her hair still looked as perfectly styled as it did the night before.

"Have a seat," Sookie offered, gesticulating toward the table. "Isabella made Tara and me this huge breakfast. I forgot how good pancakes were."

"Yeah, it smells great in here." Sam smiled at Isabella, and her returned smile was immediate.

"Thanks." She was glad he seemed less suspicious of her compared to the previous evening. In fact, he was much more calm and inviting. Isabella breathed an inner sigh of relief. _Now if only he'd actually do a striptease_, she thought.

Isabella removed Tara's dishes from the table as Sam took Tara's former seat. Sookie returned to her place beside Sam. After placing the used dishes in the sink, she turned to face Sam. "Um, everything's a little cold, but I can try and warm it up for you."

"Don't worry about it – I'll take what you have," Sam told her, his grin sending a wave of desire to bounce around inside her stomach. His sandy-blonde hair shined in the light, his dark gray t-shirt greedily containing the perfect muscles of his upper arms.

Isabella bit her bottom lip as she turned back around, the response below her waist impossible to ignore. As she grabbed another plate and began maneuvering around the kitchen, Sookie's next comment surprised her.

"Did you used to be a waitress? You're great at this." Even though Isabella's back was to Sookie, she could tell Sookie was smiling. "She's been serving us all morning," she said to Sam.

"Really?" Sam replied, leaning forward in his seat. "You trying to get someone to take your job, cher?"

"No!" Sookie shoved Sam's arm. "I think you should hire her."

"What?" Isabella started laughing as she compiled a stack of pancakes onto the plate.

"Sam should hire you. You're great. And let's face it. The male customers would just love you."

"You can't possibly be serious," Isabella said, placing the plate of lukewarm pancakes and sausage in front of Sam. She unintentionally placed a friendly hand on Sam's back before she left his side. She felt Sam's eyes on her as she stepped away, her own eyes bulging from embarrassment once she turned around.

Sam forced back a smile as his body reacted to her touch. Since their rendezvous from the night before, he knew the lingering sensation of her hands on his fur couldn't compare to her hands on his body.

"Of course I'm serious!" Sookie leaned forward in her chair for emphasis. "I think you'd do really well. Plus we desperately need another waitress."

Sam sliced into the stack of banana pancakes and pondered Sookie's idea as he chewed. She was right – Arlene and Sookie had been nagging him about hiring more help for weeks.

"C'mon, Sam, what d'ya say?" Sookie leaned back in her chair and nudged Sam's leg with her foot.

He swallowed before speaking to Isabella. "If you're interested, I am looking for another person to join our waitstaff. You could come by tonight and test the waters. Maybe shadow Sookie for a while."

"I can't-I wasn't planning on staying here. I don't have a place to stay." Isabella leaned against the counter.

"You can stay here. Especially if you make us a breakfast like this every morning."

"Sookie, that's really nice of you, but I couldn't possibly impose—"

"Don't even finish that sentence. If it'll really make you feel better, you can pay me rent. Or a nightly fee or something." Sookie shrugged her shoulders as if arranging a new living situation with her was as easy as sipping her coffee. "Come shadow me tonight. It can be hard work, but it can also be fun."

Isabella looked from Sookie's eager face to Sam's bright blue eyes. Was this truly the direction her life was taking?

"Think it over," Sam said to her as he stood up from the table. His plate was already clean. "I gotta get back to the bar." He nodded at Isabella and squeezed Sookie's shoulder before leaving the kitchen.

As Sam drove back to the bar, his mind continually offered him snapshots of Isabella's eyes. The bright light in the kitchen had illuminated them, their vibrancy a total contrast from the evening before.

After leaving Isabella on Sookie's porch, he felt guilty for being less than friendly with Isabella in the bar's parking lot the previous evening. He had shifted after closing the bar, trotting to Sookie's to ensure she and Tara were safe with Isabella inside.

Unexpectedly, Isabella had been outside – beautiful, sweet and completely open with his four-legged self. Perhaps she wasn't a typical woman, but her vulnerability had intrigued him. And this morning, maintaining propriety in the kitchen knowing his snout had been on her thigh just hours ago caused a distracting reaction in his groin.

He wanted her to show up at the bar tonight.

***

"Ready? You look ready." Sookie and Isabella were walking side by side toward the back entrance to Merlotte's. Sookie was dressed in her work uniform, Isabella in a nearly identical outfit – only her white shirt was missing the Merlotte's logo. "The clientele at Merlotte's aren't exactly a tough crowd. If anything, they're just a little weird."

_Sounds like I'd fit right in_, Isabella thought. "I'm ready."

Sookie opened the back door, and muffled music and a buzz of conversations filled their ears. They each deposited their purses in Sam's office, then walked through the back hallway to emerge near the bar.

"Kitchens are over there," Sookie said while pointing, "and you'll see Tara's already out at the bar. Looks like Sam's with her. Wait here for him – I need to get started with my tables."

Isabella glanced behind the bar and watched Sam stock a large refrigerator with assorted bottles. Bend down. Muscles flexing. Grab the bottles. Stand up. Shake the hair away from his eyes. To her, his body movements were hypnotic. From a distance, her eyes noted the red color of the bottles: Tru Blood.

Turning her head to face the crowd, her eyes moved across the bar as if they were taking a panorama shot of the room.

She could pick out every vampire in Merlotte's. Worse yet, each one was looking at her.


	5. Talk

**Chapter Five – Talk**

"Isabella?"

Snapping her out of her agitated trance, her head whipped to the left, and she was greeted by Sam's smile. He was wiping his hands dry with a white towel, his dark green Merlotte's t-shirt accenting his upper arm muscles.

"Hi Sam." She turned to face him, her eyes glancing back toward the patrons to note the location and size of each vampire. _Two together, far corner booth … another male, alone at the bar—_

"Come on back to my office. I'll have you fill out an application." Sam strode passed her, glancing back to meet the blue eyes he had been picturing for hours, silently requesting she follow him. She obeyed, trailing his long strides and following him into his office. Sam shut the door behind them, blocking out the mumble of noise outside.

"Have a seat," Sam offered, gesturing toward a chair in front of his desk. Gripping her left wrist with her right hand, Isabella nervously rose up on her tiptoes, then sat in the chair across from Sam. "The application shouldn't take you that long. It's mostly a formality. When you're done with that, I'll show you around."

Sam clamped the paper to a clipboard and handed it to her. Isabella examined his hand as she took the application from him, curious if it was smooth to the touch or rough from overwork. Trying to ignore the distracting dance in her stomach, she began to fill out the application. The sound of the pen stroking the paper filled their silence. If it weren't for the occasional outburst of laughter or fast-paced rock song from outside, there would have been no noise at all.

"Um, my current address is sort of in limbo at the moment. Do you want me to put down my former address, or …"

"Former is fine." Sam shuffled through a stack of papers on his desk, but his eyes looked up to peek at Isabella. Her long dark hair fell in shiny waves down her arms, obscuring her delicate features from his view. "Where did you come from, Isabella?" Sam asked casually, causing her to pause.

"New York," she responded, curling a chunk of hair around her right ear.

"And what did you do in New York?" He leaned back in his chair and folded his arms across his chest.

"I worked for Gucci."

"As a model?" he asked, the smile forming on his lips with ease.

"No." She let out a light laugh. "I worked in international advertising. A lot of work, but a lot of fun." She nodded, then returned her attention to the application. The pen continued spelling out the boring details of her history. As she neared the end of the questionnaire, she glanced up at Sam. Although he was holding a small stack of papers in his hands, his eyes were watching her. As her blue eyes found his, he quickly returned his attention to the documents.

"I think I'm done," she told him, reaching across the desk to hand him the clipboard.

"Thanks," he said quietly, his eyes already scanning the application. "So. You went from New York to Bon Temps."

"Looks to be that way." She folded her hands in her lap, her body rigid in the chair. She looked at him expectantly. _I guess this is my interview_.

"You understand that I can't pay you as much as you got at your last job."

"I know." She nodded with understanding, almost laughing at the mere image of her sitting in Sam's office, interviewing to be a waitress. She had never so often wondered how embarrassed her ancestors would be of her.

"And you have a little experience?" he asked, his eyes moving from the paper to her face. Her pink lips shimmered even in the dim light of his office.

"Yes. I worked at a café when I went to graduate school at Columbia. It was open 24 hours. It was on campus and always busy. I worked during peak hours."

Sam dropped the paper on his desk and leaned back in his chair, scratching his head. He let out a light laugh as the next question escaped his mouth. "Listen, Isabella. You have an MBA from Columbia. You worked a nice office job in New York at Gucci. You're overqualified for this. And I think you know it."

Isabella bit her lip and looked away from Sam, hoping she was not making a fool of herself. "Well, you're understaffed, and I'm overqualified. Sounds like a good match."

* * *

"Ooooh-wee, Sam, where'd you find this little drop of heaven?"

Lafayette didn't disappoint with his introduction, causing Sam to both smile and roll his eyes. Turning from his station at the grill, Lafayette eyed Isabella from the order window, his chocolate eyes scanning each of her visible curves.

Isabella let out an airy laugh in response, her own eyes studying Lafayette's burgundy, skin-tight tank top, black bandana and purple eye shadow. Perhaps she'd be more offended if his sexual preference wasn't so obvious.

"Straight from the sweet depths of hell," she joked.

"Ooh. More like a little drop of poison. I likes that."

Rolling his eyes, Sam officially introduced Lafayette to Isabella. Although his facial expressions remained completely objective, Sam could sense the same scrutinizing wonder in Lafeyette's eyes that was consistently present in his own. Isabella's presence didn't compute, and when Sam had previously asked her why she left her last job, he answer was brief: _I hit a wall with my boss. We were at a total crossroads. I couldn't stay there anymore._

After their introduction, Lafayette pointed at Isabella with his spatula as he stepped away back toward the grill. "Welcome, baby girl."

Sam turned around and guided Isabella away from the window. "I think that's all you need to see of the kitchen," he said with a smirk.

"Is he always like that?"

"Pretty much."

At the completion of her tour, Sam led Isabella back to the bar. The number of occupants had nearly doubled. She stopped as they reached the end of the bar, Sam pausing beside her. Isabella had frozen to the floor, her eyes staring ahead.

Sam met her gaze to watch a tall vampire walk toward her, his strides long and deliberate. With his dark hair pulled back into a ponytail, the smirk on his face was visible and sinister. Isabella recognized him as the vampire Logan from the previous night. Her muscles involuntarily flexed, and Sam's eyes darted to the defining lines of her upper arms. Grabbing her forearm, he pulled her behind the bar as Logan walked past, his deep, audible inhalation hoping to catch a trace of her scent.

Isabella gasped at Sam's abruptness, but froze again when his blue eyes were suddenly so close to hers.

"I have vampires in my bar," Sam began softly. "I get that you're uncomfortable around them, and I don't necessarily like them either, but they're still customers." Sam paused, exhaling loudly through his nose. "Can you handle that?"

Her defiance intensified her hatred of the undead. _They_ would not be the source of her failure.

She nodded, and Sam backed away from her. "Good." He untied a black apron from around his waist and handed it to her. "I'd like you to shadow Sookie for a while."

* * *

_Two weeks later …_

"Isabella!" Arlene shouted to Isabella at the bar. "Darlin', I'm so behind on my tables. Can you grab my drinks for table six?"

Isabella nodded and began loading the drinks on her tray. The bottles and glasses clanked as they filled up each nook of space. She lifted the tray with ease and hurried to make the delivery to Arlene's table.

When she turned around, her body bumped into Sam's, causing a domino effect with the remaining bottles of beer on her tray. A singular bottle tumbled off the edge, but her hands flashed to the bottle with unbelievable speed. It was back in her free hand before it could fall past her waist.

Sam looked from the bottle to her face, his eyes conveying a gaze Isabella had not seen since the fight in the parking lot on her first night in Bon Temps. "How—"

"Phenomenal reflexes." She winked at him, then brushed passed him to deliver the remaining drinks on her tray to her own table.

Sam watched her walk away, the hint of a smile creeping onto his face. Isabella had shifted into her role with incredible ease, adapting to the unpredictable customer flow while learning the lay of the land. Sookie and Arlene were pleased to have someone so competent join their ranks and ease the burden of their workload.

Her only flaw was serving the vampire customers. Although she would perform her role, she was always curt and made her time at the tables as brief as possible. Normally, the vampires came into the bar alone, but occasionally, they came as part of a small coven. They always sat in her section, and Isabella was not shy about showing her irritation. Sam could not deny his own annoyance at their wandering eyes, their devoted attention to her every move.

At Isabella's latest trip to the bar, Tara asked her to retrieve four cases of beer from the kitchen freezer. She deposited her tray at the rear of the bar, then hurried into the kitchen, her feet nearly dancing along the floor.

"How's your night goin', baby girl?" Lafayette asked as she entered the kitchen.

"Not too bad. Pretty busy out there though. Arlene's having a hard time keeping up. How are things back here?" Isabella opened the freezer, the blast of cold air causing her to take a step back before entering.

"I ain't having a hard time keeping _anything_ up," he responded.

"So nothing new then?" she asked with a grin.

"Damn straight."

Still smiling, Isabella stepped into the freezer, the frigid air numbing her anxious, overheated limbs. Glancing around the freezer, the only full cases of the beer Tara had asked for were on the top shelf, nearly four feet above her head. Stepping onto the lowest shelf she reached for the first case, jumping at the appearance of two hands on her waist. Her head whipped around to meet Sam's kind eyes.

"Can't have you falling. Arlene and Sookie would kill me." Sam's eyes helplessly moved along the curves of her hips as her head faced forward. Wanting to ignore the pang of desire in his jeans, he instead focused on her legs – long, slender, sun-kissed … the desire grew in intensity, and he quickly looked down.

Isabella grabbed the first case, her muscles secure with its weight, then started stepping down. Sam's grip on her waist automatically tightened to help steady her descent. He took a few steps back to allow her enough room to settle on the floor in front of him. As her feet firmly planted, her back molded into his warm chest to solidify her balance. Their physical contact ignited an unfamiliar spark, the electricity wrapping around her like fine silk.

Isabella's head turned to the left seeking Sam's bright blue gaze, a strip of dark hair falling over her right eye. His left hand left her waist to brush the shiny strand of hair away from the blue orb, his fingers brushing her cheek before dropping to her waist. Isabella exhaled a quiet, ragged breath, her lips parting expectedly.

"Why don't you take that case to Tara," he said, his voice soft and soothing. "I'll get the rest."

Turning away from him, Isabella buried her desire deep into her core. Her feelings were hard to pinpoint. _Angry? Sad? Relieved? Frustrated? Confused?_ Still embarrassed by his rejection, she hurried out of the freezer. Sam sighed and leaned against the shelf, his body thankful for the cool embrace of the icy freezer.

* * *

The end of the evening arrived faster than expected. Arlene had already left to relieve the babysitter and check on her kids, and Sookie and Isabella had been trading nights to help out with closing. Tonight was Isabella's night. Despite their awkward moment in the freezer, Sam couldn't deny his excitement. It was his favorite time with Isabella – she was herself when she was alone with him.

With all the customers gone, Sam lowered the volume of the jukebox and changed the music to a more relaxing rock ballad. As Sam cleaned up behind the bar, Isabella seated herself across from him, a pile of napkin holders lying across the bar waiting to be refilled.

"You've been doing a great job, Isabella," Sam started to break the silence. "I know Arlene and Sookie are real glad to have you around."

"Thanks. I'm glad to hear that." She smiled and filled one of the napkin holders, running a hand through her long locks. Sam breathed in her scent, taking time to memorize the smell of sunlight, cool breezes and clean cotton flowing from her skin. _Odd_, Sam thought, considering she was hardly outdoors today.

"And I'm not gonna lie. You bring in more customers. The male customers in particular seem to like you. Maybe even a bit too much." Sam leaned on the bar across from her, his blue eyes sparkling to match his flirtatious grin.

"So you're just keeping me around to make some extra money?" she replied, leaning forward and matching his smile.

"It's not often Bon Temps gets an Italian Gucci model."

"Shut up!" Isabella crumpled a napkin and tossed it at Sam's face, laughing as it bounced off his forehead.

"You're a good fit. Even though you show preference to the customers with a pulse."

"They're more pleasant than those without one," she replied nonchalantly.

Sam wanted to ask her why. _Why _she hated vampires so much. Had she dated one and had a bad relationship? Did she know one that betrayed her? Her boss, perhaps – the one she mentioned in her interview? _I hit a wall with my boss. We were at a total crossroads_. Was he a vampire?

"Why do you hate them so much?" The words left his mouth before he could take them back.

Isabella paused her chore, looking up at Sam. His voice was kind, calming. But that did not eliminate the rush of anxiety that filled her stomach, the immediate nausea that forced the color to vanish from her face.

Sam noticed her sudden discomfort. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have asked that. I didn't mean to make you—"

"It's okay." Even though she said the words, her body felt the opposite. She continued refilling the napkin holders in silence, the playfulness vaporized from her face and movements. She kept her head down but sensed Sam's eyes on her as he worked behind the bar. It wasn't until she was refilling the last holder that Sam spoke again.

"Hey, you can take off if you'd like. It's been a long day for you, and there's not much left to do before I close up."

"You sure?"

"Yeah."

"Great." She hopped out of her seat and began gathering her hair to pull it back with a hair tie. "I just need to change, and then I'll be out of here."

"Change?" Sam asked, leaning against the bar.

"Yeah, I've started jogging home from work. It's only about three miles. Saves on gas and I get a little exercise. It's really nice running at night."

Sam stood up straight. "I don't know if I like that, Izzy – you jogging alone at night."

She tried to stifle her scoff. "Really, Sam. It's okay. And even if something did happen, I think you know I can handle myself in a fight." She winked and jogged away from the bar.

"Izzy!" he called after her.

"Don't worry about me!" she called back.

She quickly changed into her running clothes – black shorts and a pink tank top – said goodnight to Sam, then hopped outside onto the gravel of the parking lot. After briefly stretching her quadriceps and hamstrings, she started jogging away from Merlotte's. The cool breeze washed away any remaining anxiety from Sam's inquiry about her hatred of vampires, the rhythm of her feet on the ground bringing a grin to her face.

After only two minutes of running, a rustle and flash of movement in the brush made her dodge to her right. A dog appeared from the shadows – the same dog that had comforted her during her first night in Bon Temps.

"Well, hey, pal. It's been a while since I've seen you." She slowed her jog and ran a hand across the dog's head. "You wanna run with me?" The dog barked and kept a steady pace beside her. Isabella laughed and picked up speed. "Okay. C'mon!" The dog appeared to smile as it trotted beside her through the sweet night air, the trees rustling with life around them.

* * *

The vampire's footsteps echoed off the marble floors of the mansion, its bright lights a paradox to their universal hatred of light. He was shocked the queen's ambassador was awake at this hour, but perhaps his phone call intrigued him out of sleep.

"Good evening, sir," the vampire said as he entered what he presumed was the living room of the mansion. Contrary to the hallway, this room was dimly lit. All the furniture was deep red, elegant and intimidating. Dark paintings adorned the walls, each depicting a ravenous, yet delicious death, their elaborate gold frames praising the loss of blood. "Thank you so much for seeing me."

"I certainly hope you have awoken me for good reason," the ambassador said quietly, sipping a thick, red liquid from a champagne flute. Even in the dim light, the sheen from his jet-black hair was visible. He sat in a tall, wingback chair, his legs crossed casually. His eyes darted to the younger vampire, curious as to how quickly he could pry his left arm off for disturbing his sleep schedule.

"I believe I have, sir. I am quite certain I have found the woman from our legends – the one we have been searching for. The Azzurra."

This caused the ambassador to lower the glass from his mouth, his tongue slowly tracing his upper lip to devour any remaining liquid. "I see. And what has brought you to this conclusion?"

"She has a beauty one can only behold. The human men lust over her like fools, as if hypnotized by her. Her strength is beyond that of a normal human female. So powerful. So abrupt. And … her scent. She smells unlike any human I have ever smelled. In fact, she smells so deliciously _un-human_. It's irresistible.

"How very interesting, Logan." The ambassador's lips curled upward into a ghostly smile. "I would so very much like to meet her."


	6. Uprising

_A special thanks to linsyhagen, aurora151989, and (of course) Raging Raven and MRSSPICY for your support and reviews. More reviews are welcome, as always!_

**Chapter 6 – Uprising  
**_Warning: chapter contains some sexual content._

"Isabella! Get your cute butt back here and gimmie a hand!" Tara shouted to Isabella from behind the bar. Tara used the front of her forearm to wipe the sweat from her forehead. She let out an irritated sigh when another three customers slapped sweaty, crinkled bills on the bar and simultaneously shouted their orders at her.

Isabella eyed Tara from one of her tables across the bar, unsure of how she could possibly help. Merlotte's was short a waitress tonight, which meant Isabella was handling nearly double the tables she was used to. Arlene couldn't find a babysitter for her kids, which left only Sookie and Isabella to manage the Friday night crowd with help from Sam when possible.

After scribbling down orders, Isabella offered the customers at her table a hurried smile, then jogged back to the kitchen window to drop off the order for Lafayette. "Four more burgers, Lafayette!"

"Damn, hooker, I'm already six orders behind. I can't make no more burgers." Lafayette didn't even pause to look up from the grill. The stress in his voice was evident, which was unusual for his laid back personality.

"Wish I could help you, babe, but I'm backed up, too."

Hurrying back into the buzzing restaurant, Isabella snuck behind the bar, her black shorts snug around her thighs. Tara was attempting to handle a mob scene, with patrons lined up around the bar at least three people deep.

"What do you want me to do?" Isabella shouted to Tara over the eager bellows from patrons and deafening rock music. The customers were already staring at Isabella, holding money toward her in expectation of service.

"Just start making drinks," Tara shouted back, her head down as she concocted three beverages at once.

"I don't know how to make anything!" Her hair bounced as she shook her head.

"Just fake it!" Tara replied, her voice tense. She grabbed a folded bill with one hand while sliding the freshly made drinks across the bar. Isabella's eyes darted from Tara to the customers, her orbs bouncing nervously from person to person.

"I got an easy one for you, sweetheart," an overweight, older male called a few feet to Isabella's left. "Just need three bottles of beer." The man held out a twenty-dollar bill, forcing Isabella to snap into action. She snatched the cash, then darted to the freezer at the far end of the bar to retrieve the beer bottles. The cool blast of air provided an additional shot of anxiety. Grabbing the necks of the bottles, Isabella removed them and kicked the door shut.

"Keep the change, darlin'," the man said with a wink when Isabella handed him his drinks. She thanked him, but her eyes moved to the far end of the bar where Jason Stackhouse was eagerly calling her name, the upper half of his body draped over the bar. Eyes wide, his arm was outstretched, his fingers clutching a wad of cash. Giggling quietly, Isabella walked toward him.

_Jason actually looks pretty cute tonight. I like when he gels his hair like that … it _is _sort of cute how excited he is to see me . . . and he looks really good in white. Ugh, fuck! Goddamn cycle_.

Quickly calculating the dates since her last period, Isabella knew she was approximately seven days from her next monthly visit. Which, for her kind, meant extra hormones, elevated arousal, and soaring sex pheromones far more powerful than any normal female experienced. No wonder Jason seemed to be drooling over her more than usual. And no wonder she was enjoying it.

Shrugging off the abnormal, aroused thoughts about Jason, she greeted him at the end of the bar. "Hey, Jason." She laughed again as his arm remained outstretched, his eyes still wide as they greedily surveyed her body.

"Hey. Hey Isabella." Jason felt the corners of his mouth curve upward into a smile, but his tongue rose inside his mouth, craving to run across her smooth skin.

"Take a seat, Jason. Sam might get a little angry if you reach any farther over the bar." She reached across the polished wood to push Jason backward into his seat. He watched her arm reach forward, his crotch responding when her hand pressed into his shoulder. Her skin smelled faintly of sweet berries and honeysuckle – he could almost taste the juicy liquid running down his throat.

"Oh-okay."

"What can I get for you?" Isabella smiled sweetly and leaned over the bar toward Jason, her eyes darting to the contour of his skin-tight t-shirt. She felt the moist air caress her newly exposed cleavage. _Stop flirting!_ She suddenly stood erect, trying to ignore Jason's focus on her breasts.

Jason licked his lips, his eyes swirling around the curve of the perfect mounds. Isabella's head rejected his lustful reaction, but her hormones savored the behavior.

"Y'know how they say that Michelangelo's Sistine Chapel is like, one of the greatest works of art of all time?"

"Sure," Isabella responded, her eyebrow cocking upward at his random statement.

"You are my Michelangelo," Jason finished, speaking each word slowly for emphasis.

"What?" she asked with a laugh.

"You look so pretty," he replied, pressing his hands into the bar. "Like a work of art."

"Thanks, Jason." _I think_. "You sure you don't want a drink?"

"I'll take it from here," a friendly voice said from behind her. Sam's hands appeared on Isabella's shoulders and lightly squeezed them. The physical contact sent a shockwave of arousal to race through her body and collect in her core.

Isabella blinked when her thoughts aroused her private desires.

_A snapshot of Sam's naked body flashed through her mind, his hands gripping her shoulders as he greedily pounded into her from behind. She was clenching the edge of the bar for support, her moans filling the empty, dark room, Sam's head tilted back in raw pleasure …_

"What?" She swiftly turned around and bumped into him. "Whoops. 'Scuse me." Isabella gripped Sam's waist, her fingers pressing into the soft cotton of his black t-shirt. His close proximity and piercing blue eyes invited a new, equally arousing image to sweep through her mind.

_Still at the bar, Isabella's body had shifted positions. Still gripping the edge of the dark wood, her back was pushed up against it. Sam was holding her legs in the air under her knees, her hole poised at waist-height for Sam to thrust forward into her …_

Isabella abruptly shook her head and unintentionally jerked forward, her heart pounding in response to her sexy visions. _Goddamn period_. But unlike her flirtatious thoughts about Jason, she truly craved the attention her mind devoted to Sam.

Sam laughed. "You're a little jumpy tonight."

"Sorry."

"Don't apologize. Go on and head back to your tables. I'll help Tara out."

Nodding, she glided past Sam, their eyes lingering long enough to share a grin. Isabella craved a break and a moment of release in the cool, night air. But the entrance of three vampires, Logan in the lead, erased the thought.

* * *

"You're gonna have to get their order sometime, sweetie," Sookie said to Isabella as they cleared off one of the few empty tables in Merlotte's. Isabella made a face, the childish reaction causing Sookie to laugh. "Sam's gonna pitch a fit if you don't start waitin' on them. He can shout pretty loud back in his office."

"Maybe," she responded quietly, quickly wiping off the table with a rag.

"Not that he'd be against getting you alone or anything," Sookie said, her own voice lowering as a grin spread across her face.

"What?" Isabella paused, an airy laugh escaping her mouth as she craned her neck to stare at Sookie.

"Oh come _on_. Sam Merlotte may be guarded about lots of things, but he wears his crush for you like a giant sign around his neck. How have you not heard Arlene talking about this already?"

Isabella hoped her dark tresses covered enough of her face to hide her flushing cheeks. She had considered Sam's feelings but not confirmed them. Attempting to change the subject before her emotions overtook her mind, she briskly asked, "You gonna help me with this table?"

"You gonna serve those vampires?" she challenged back, the grin appearing on her face as her hands rested on her hips.

"Hell no," Isabella scoffed with a laugh.

"Okay, fine. I'll trade you. I'll get their orders, and you can practice with Bill."

"Deal." Isabella grinned and nudged Sookie's shoulder as she walked toward Bill's solitary figure, thankful to trade one, more familiar vampire for three creepy ones.

Logan and his two, undead friends had been silently staring at Isabella since they entered the bar nearly 20 minutes ago. Their charcoal eyes eagerly probed her figure, the visual harassment causing Isabella's muscles to flex.

She delivered a final glare at Logan before turning to greet Bill at a booth in the far corner of the pub.

"Friends of yours?" Bill drawled, unable to resist the smile that teased his lips.

"Friends of _yours?"_ she retorted, his humor failing to amuse her.

"No, I do not know them, but I wouldn't worry. Logan is the only elder there – the other two are too young to … well, too young to create any real challenge for you in an empty parking lot."

Isabella finally cracked a smile. "Well, what about Sookie?" she asked, glancing at Sookie's trim, perky figure politely talking to the vampires. "Aren't you worried about her being so close to those . . ." She trailed off before blurting any expletives that may offend the vampire in front of her.

"Sookie is mine," Bill said, his voice crisp and clear. "It would be . . . unwise for them to even lay a finger on her."

Isabella's eyebrow rose inquisitively. Witnessing Bill's adoration for Sookie was an unfamiliar trait in a vampire. Her eyes fleeted to Sookie again, her new friend, who smiled at the vampires before gracefully walking toward the bar, no doubt to request bottles of Tru Blood. Although the two younger vampires watched Sookie, Logan's eyes pierced into Isabella's, his body frozen as he analyzed her demeanor.

Sighing in aggravation, Isabella quickly retrieved Bill's Tru Blood order, then maneuvered to a different table to take a other round of drink orders from an already-inebriated group of four.

While leaning against the bar waiting for the drinks, Isabella's eyes found Sam's trim waist, the black shirt clinging to his stomach. Biting her lip to stifle the flash of lust that shot to her groin, her eyes moved up his chest until they reached the profile of his face. Her body warmed in response to the color of his hair, the tempting arc of his jaw, the delicate curve of his lips . . .

"Drinks," Tara announced, interrupting Isabella's thoughts as she rested the glasses and Bill's bottle of Tru Blood on Isabella's tray.

"Thanks, Tara. You're the best."

"Don't I know it," she said with a playful grin.

As Isabella lifted the tray from the bar, she looked toward Sam to steal a final stare, but his eyes were already on her. He winked and flashed her a smile before returning his attention to the customer opposite him.

Grinning to herself, Isabella turned around, but stopped abruptly when she nearly collided with a body.

"What? Did I frighten you, baby?"

Logan's quiet voice floated through her ears even in the noisy restaurant, causing both her brain and her body to freeze. It wasn't the low, gravely voice she was expecting, but rather a higher-pitched tenor with a forced sweetness.

Her intuition screamed for her to acknowledge the imminent danger. Her muscles tensed in a conditioned response for defense, her adrenaline fueling her limbs with a pulsing strength.

"Look at you. I can practically see the power flowing through your veins." Logan took a calculated step toward her, his voice even quieter. His eyes roamed her figure to further analyze her body's response to his proximity. Enjoying her tense stature, Logan inhaled through his nostrils, his eyes rolling back in pleasure. "God, you even smell like fucking power. I can practically taste you just standing here."

Isabella's jaw clenched, her body furious at her for holding back her aggression. Logan chuckled, relishing her irritation.

"C'mon, you can do better than this." He leaned forward. "What would it take for me to see what you can do, huh?" He stepped even closer, so close that the tip of his nose was mere inches from her forehead. "You won't even fucking serve us!" His voice rose as he cursed, and his arm swiftly knocked the tray from her hand. The drinks crashed to the floor, their liquid contents exploding with the clear glass.

The shattering of the glass triggered Isabella's defenses, and her own fury exploded from her arm. The punch came instantly, but Isabella's sharp senses caught the eerie smile appear on Logan's face as the full force of her fist pummeled into his jaw.

The bar silenced as the vampire fell backward, the deafening crash causing each head to turn as Logan's body connected with the floor. Like a bolt of electricity, he was back on his feet and in front of Isabella, his former smile now a shadow behind his fiercely tightened lips. Demonstrating returned aggression, Logan pressed his chest into hers, forcing her backward until her back pressed into the bar.

The air caught in Sam's throat when he saw Isabella's petite body surrounded by an undead predator. The potential consequences of his inaction caused him to bolt from behind the bar. "Hey!" Sam charged between the human and the vampire, his arm shoving into Logan's chest. "Back off! Back _off!_"

Logan licked his bottom lip, his wide eyes refusing to leave the female anomaly shielded by Sam. "Maybe you should keep a leash on your bitch, Merlotte."

"Fuck you, you undead piece of shit!" Isabella's quaking limbs only emphasized the rage in her voice as she pressed into Sam's back toward Logan, her body itching for a second hit.

Sam's head whipped to the left, his narrow eyes piercing into hers. "Isabella! Get the fuck back to my office! NOW!"


	7. Bury Me in Surprise

Many thanks to all who have reviewed! I wish I could have shared this chapter with you sooner, but I wanted to make sure it was up to your standards. :) Enjoy!

**Chapter Seven – Bury Me in Surprise  
_Warning: chapter contains mild sexual content_**

Isabella glared at Logan before pushing passed Sam, her footsteps crushing portions of broken glass that lay on the ground like forgotten remains. Sam felt his stomach tighten as she disappeared from his sight. But he could not clearly identify why. Instead of being angry with her, he tried to channel his anger toward the vampire before him.

"Get out of my bar." Sam spoke each word softly. With purpose. He pointed in the direction of the door, but all eyes remained fixed on Logan.

Logan licked at the trickle of blood oozing from his bottom lip, his eyes narrowing at Sam's words. "That bitch punches me, and you kick _me_ out—"

"Don't act like you didn't provoke her." Sam stepped toward Logan, his blue eyes blazing. "My bar. My rules."

A hint of a laugh escaped Logan's mouth, and he closed the gap between him and Sam. Leaning dangerously close to Sam, Logan whispered into his ear. "I'll be back for her. And I'll keep coming back and coming back until I get what I want. And there's not a goddamn thing you can do about it."

Clenching his jaw, Sam felt a heat of building rage surround his body. "Out," he said darkly. "And take your friends with you."

Logan backed away from Sam, a smirk playing on his face. "See you soon." Like a walking, pale statue, Logan strode away from Sam and toward the exit, his two minions in tow. Each head turned to follow them while their bodies remained frozen.

As soon as the door closed, the shocked, curious eyes turned to Sam, whose emotions could fully focus on his rage now that the threat of vampires had been momentarily eased. The persistent beat of rock music filled the bar, only enhancing the patrons' silence.

"Y'all can relax now." Sam attempted to rouse the life back into his customers after it disappeared with the vampires. "Have a drink on me." He waved toward Tara behind the bar, the prospect of free alcohol causing a murmur of response among the crowd, wooing the patrons out of their stupor. Tara scowled at Sam in reply. Demanding compliance, he returned her defiance with an even more vicious glare.

Marching past the glass and splattered liquid on the floor, Sam marched out of sight and barged into his office. Isabella was leaning against the front of his desk, her arms crossed over her chest.

Frozen in fury over her loss of control, she didn't budge when he entered, even when the walls rumbled in anger as he slammed the door behind him.

"Are you out of your goddamn mind?!" he shouted. "What the fuck do you think you're doing? Do you have any fucking idea what he could have done?"

Isabella's jaw jutted out in silent defiance. She bit her bottom lip, her eyes focusing on the floor instead of Sam's flushed face.

"You need a goddamn CAT scan after what you just did!" Sam's hair shook as his voice escalated even more, his furious glare a mere foot from her face. "I don't get this ridiculous hatred of vampires that you clearly can't control, but goddamn it, Isabella, keep it the fuck out of my bar!"

"Damn it, Sam, I get it!" Her body shot up, and her blazing blue eyes pierced into his. The tears stung her eyes but did not fall. They shimmered in the light, their moistness causing Sam to stop. Finally, the source for his anger swept through his head like a burst of flames. He wasn't angry for her lack of self-control – he was angry because he wanted nothing to harm her. And her emotional reaction to Logan had threatened that.

He sighed, and his soft voice massaged the air as his eyes drilled into hers. "I just . . . I don't want to see you get hurt."

"Yeah, well, I'm not," she replied quietly, the defiance in her voice souring the desire oozing from Sam's eyes. Isabella pushed passed his shoulder and darted for the door.

As soon as she opened it an inch, another force caused it to slam shut. Isabella whipped around, her anger evaporating at the sight of Sam's suddenly calm, steady gaze, his face just inches from hers. Her back pressed into the door as her eyes studied him. His right arm was poised above her head to keep the door closed, his eyes scanning her face. The orbs moved from her own gleaming eyes to her wavy tresses, to the smooth, bronzed skin of her collarbone. Just looking at her caused his groin to flicker with desire.

His closeness made her heart beat accelerate, and she felt her blood race through her veins in response to his warmth. The intense focus of his blue eyes bewildered her. Her lips parted to exhale a slightly ragged breath, and his eyes darted to her mouth.

Sam's entire body tingled as he inhaled her dreamy scent. He leaned forward and brushed his lips against her forehead, a few wisps of his dirty blonde hair tickling her temple. Sam's right hand slid down against the wood of the door until his fingertips pressed against the smooth skin of her neck.

Isabella's eyes closed as she felt his soft lips caress her skin. The slow, sensual movements of his fingertips along her neck sliced through her flesh and shot sparks into her groin.

She craned her neck to briefly meet his eyes before lightly pressing her lips to his. She pulled back to watch his response, but Sam leaned forward to meet her lips again, the sweet flavor barely satisfying his craving for her.

Isabella's hands moved to Sam's waist as he intensified the kiss, his tongue tracing her lip, begging her to open her mouth to him. Willingly allowing him access, she parted her lips. Her soft moan filled his mouth as the moist flesh of his tongue slipped inside, his hands moving to the sides of her face.

Sam felt his shaft press into his briefs as her hands glided from their grip at the base of his shirt and rested on his chest. He wanted her hands all over him. He wanted to taste every crevice on her body. Knowingly pushing his luck, his right hand began to roam downward across her breast. The sudden wave of pleasure that shot to her core startled Isabella, and she abruptly pulled away from his lips.

"Am I going too fast?" he asked quietly, breathlessly.

She felt her body continue to melt at the concern in his voice. "No. I just . . ." She licked her bottom lip, her tongue still able to taste Sam's sweetness. "Should we really be—"

A hard rap on the door behind her made Isabella jump. She instantly felt the warmth evaporate as Sam's hands left her face. Her eyes squinted shut in embarrassment as a sigh escaped her nostrils.

"Yeah, who is it?" Sam asked, his voice conveying annoyance. His neck craned backward as his eyes unwillingly moved to the door.

"It's Lafayette. I need your help back in the kitchen."

"Hang on a sec, Lafayette. I—"

Isabella slipped away from Sam's cocooned embrace against the door, opened it, and slipped outside passed Lafayette whose eyes followed her curiously.

"Izzy!" Sam called after her, his voice full of frustration.

"That was quite a show you put on out there with that vampire, girl."

Ignoring them both, she hurried back into the bar, flushed and embarrassed by the makeout session in Sam's office. _Stupid. So stupid. How the hell did that even happen? _The bar had emptied by at least half since she had been in Sam's office. Most likely because of the awkward fight, she assumed. Isabella tried to calm her quaking limbs, her body overcome by anger, frustration, embarrassment and lust.

Her anger was directed solely toward herself when she spotted Sookie wiping up the mess Logan had created when he knocked over the tray.

"Aw, Sook," Isabella started, grabbing a rag and crouching down on the floor across from her. "Don't clean that up. Let me do it. It's my damn mess."

"I can't believe you punched a vampire," Sookie said quietly, leaning back from her crouched position to rest her butt on her heels. "What the heck were you thinking?"

"C'mon Sookie." Isabella sighed, her body too overwhelmed to argue. "I really can't take another lecture." Her voice was quiet as she wiped up the spattered remains of alcohol.

Sookie paused before continuing, knowing she should choose her words carefully before treading through the murky depths of Isabella's current emotions. Sookie was tempted to dive into Isabella's mind, but she resisted the urge to listen in.

To her left, Sam and Lafayette walked passed them on their way to the kitchen, and Sam's head turned to the right in search of Isabella. His eyes found her, willing her to meet his gaze. Sookie couldn't read his expression, but she didn't doubt the verbal lashing Isabella probably just took in Sam's office.

"I suppose he deserved it," Sookie said nonchalantly, wiping up another puddle of spilled drink. "You didn't hurt your hand, did you?"

Isabella had froze, her eyes wide as they focused on the bar's newest inhabitants. Sookie's head turned in the direction of her stare. _Another vampire_.

Even Sookie felt the air get stuck in her throat. The new vamp was one of the most beautiful men she had ever seen. _Straight out of that 'GQ' magazine_, as Arlene would say. Dressed in dark blue jeans and a tight, black t-shirt, the ground seemed to submit to his footsteps. His pale face accentuated his dark chocolate eyes, his chiseled features seemingly carved out of stone. Tall and perfectly sculpted, the dark-haired vampire was showcasing a flirtatious smile that oozed with temptation and desire. It was directed solely at Isabella.

Isabella felt as if her innards were literally being torn in two. Her rational half told her to run, to defend herself from this dangerous creature, but her aroused half, dominated by her upcoming cycle, told her to fuck that vampire until dawn. It wasn't as threatening to her as Logan. Instead, he appeared more like a sleeping predator, a composed human shell concealing his hostile instincts. His natural sexiness seemed to float around him like mist, then swirl through the air to mystify everyone in his wake.

Limbs quaking, Isabella stumbled backward onto the floor, causing Sookie's head to snap in her direction.

"Isabella?" Sookie hurried to her side and placed a hand on her back.

"I'm fine," Isabella lied. "I'm fine," she repeated, proving to Sookie that she was the opposite of fine. Isabella quickly stood up, her eyes not moving from the vampire, whose smile was still attempting to charm her from across the bar.

"Is it that vampire? Do you know him?" Sookie asked, her eyes moving from Isabella's anxious face to the sexy vamp.

_Don't know him_, Sookie heard Isabella answer in her head. Isabella's thoughts were severely jumbled, much like Sam's, which confirmed her suspicion that Isabella wasn't fully human. Sookie could catch pictures and words, but not full, coherent thoughts. It was Isabella's attraction to the vampire that made her upset, made her want to run . . .

"Would you hate me if I left?" Isabella asked, her eyes finally seeming to clear from their fog as they now focused on Sookie. "I just need to get out of here. I'm going to burst if I don't—

"Okay." Sookie nodded. She didn't have the authority to send Isabella home, but she had the common sense to. If Sam got pissed for it, then too bad. The girl needed some solace.

"Thank you." Isabella squeezed Sookie's hand before darting away from her and out the rear entrance of Merlotte's. She inhaled the moist air as the symphony of crickets filled her ears. Even though the air was dense, it was clean. Free.

Hoping to rid her mind of the excess emotion, she sprinted away from Merlotte's. Maybe everything would stay there: the rage she felt for Logan, her general hatred of vampires and the fear that masked it, the new vampire that made her insides tingle, her mounting attachment to Sam . . . perhaps running would obliterate the emotion. Perhaps the breeze she generated would pull at her feelings and leave it in the dirt with her fresh footsteps in the earth.

And she sprinted through the darkened greens, her shadow chasing her in the moonlight.

* * *

"Sook, you seen Isabella?" Sam asked inside Merlotte's. She was cleaning up the final remains of the splattered drinks and stood to meet Sam's gaze.

"I sent her home."

"What?" Sam's eyes immediately narrowed. "Tell me how the hell you have any authority to—"

"You didn't see her, Sam. Something snapped – she needed to get out of here."

"How long ago did she leave?" Sam asked, his voice softer, but his anger and frustration still very evident.

"Only about two minutes ago."

Sam cursed and darted for the same exit Isabella had fled from only minutes before. He started jogging toward Sookie's house, immediately shedding his shirt upon reaching the shelter of the trees. Slowing slightly to stagger out of his jeans, briefs, and finally footwear, Sam shifted to his collie form. Isabella was fast and had a head start – he would only be able to catch up with her as a dog.

Sprinting through the trees and bushes, the branches swished past him, brushing lightly against his whiskers. He caught and followed her scent – today it was like sweet grass slowly burning in a crackling fire.

In less than five minutes, Sam saw her. She was more out of breath than usual, her chest heaving rapidly for oxygen. She had been sprinting but was now forced to jog at a slow pace to catch her breath. Sam caught up with her, quietly barking to announce his presence as he reached her side.

Isabella jumped as she turned her head to meet the dog's eyes, her anxiety level making her more jittery than usual. "Hey, dog," she said quietly. "Couldn't wait for you tonight . . . had to get away from there."

Sam instantly felt guilty. _'Had to get away?' Because I kissed her?_ He attempted to ignore his own feelings, and instead focus on how Sam the dog was going to get her to return to the safety of Merlotte's where Sam the person could protect her.

He barked. And barked. And barked. Loud, persistent barking until she finally slowed. "What the hell is the matter with—"

The sudden blow to her head cut her off, the brutal punch pummeling her into the dirt. Despite the instant, throbbing, pain, Isabella's adrenaline took over. She rolled onto her back to meet her attacker and shot upward with the speed of lightning. The dog stationed itself beside her. Its barking continued, although its tone was more aggressive, snarls intermingling with the sharp sounds.

"How do you think that punch compared to yours?" Logan's voice penetrated her ears as she planted her feet into the ground. She bent her knees and flexed her arms in preparation for battle as his sinister grin faced her from less than ten feet away. The dog's barking stopped, but low, guttural growls took its place.

"What the fuck do you want?"

"I wanna taste you from top to bottom. I know you're different, and I'm here to find out how much."

Logan lunged forward, his body like a boulder as it crushed into hers and tackled her to the ground. Isabella reached her left arm across her face, then thrust it backward to slam her elbow into his jaw. As his body was forced backward, Isabella lunged forward and grabbed Logan's wrists to force his back into the ground. She straddled his waist while her hands kept their unrelenting grip on his wrists. Around her, the world was silent except for the rustle of the trees. The dog was gone.

"Hoo-ha, baby!" Logan said with a laugh. "Look at you go. And on top of me already." Logan thrust upward into her crotch, eliciting an immediate surge of anger to explode from Isabella. She spat in his face, the unexpected insult infuriating Logan in return. Unable to free his arms, he raised his head from the dirt and smashed it into her forehead. The blow dazed Isabella, her body swaying enough to release him.

With both arms now free, he backhanded her with his left hand, causing her to grunt in pain. His hands moved to her shoulders next, and he shoved her backward with the full force of his strength. Isabella gasped as her body soared backward and abruptly collided with a tree trunk nearly 30 feet away.

* * *

At Merlotte's, Sookie was humming as she stepped outside the back entrance to deposit a bag of trash into the dumpster.

"Sookie!"

"Sam?" She turned her head at the sound of Sam's voice, then dropped the bag of trash when his nude body appeared. "What the hell—"

"Bill. I need Bill," he said quickly, out of breath. "Logan's attacking Isabella."

Terror filled Sookie's insides as the words left Sam's mouth, and Bill was at her side in the next second.

* * *

The impact from the tree forced the air from Isabella's lungs, and she was already gasping for oxygen when she finally landed on the ground amidst the tree's roots. Wheezing for air, Isabella looked up in time to see Logan charging at her at full vampire speed.

With nearly equal speed, she swung her right leg sideways, her foot punching into Logan's thigh before he could reach her. The vampire grunted as he fell sideways into the dirt.

Silence followed, but only long enough for Isabella to hear Logan's fangs emerge like daggers from his mouth. "Enough fuckin' around." Like a wild animal, he lunged at her again, this time succeeding as he forced her body into the ground. Still gasping for air, this latest blow only worsened her need for oxygen. Coupled with the dizziness from being struck in the head multiple times, her will to fight was weakening.

Logan was now the one to pin her arms at her sides, his cold hands tight around her wrists. Grunting angrily on top of her, Isabella's vision cleared enough to see his fangs poised to strike. She managed a hoarse scream as his eyes widened in lust and his mouth dropped to her neck.

Her scream silenced as his fangs pierced her skin, her arm muscles burning as they struggled against his grip. Logan groaned and fully lowered his body on top of hers, his weight further depriving Isabella of the air she needed. He was older, stronger than the others she had fought. She unwillingly cried out as he greedily sucked her blood from her neck, his crotch roughly grinding into her own as his arousal began its climax.

Like a gunshot, another body collided with Logan, knocking him off of Isabella like a piece of trash. Snarling, fangs poised, Bill dove across Isabella and tackled Logan, the two vampire bodies crashing together like marble statues.

As their rumbling bodies disappeared behind a row of dense trees, Isabella rolled on her side and began to cough, her lungs grasping for precious air. Crawling to her knees, she slowly stood up, her face moist with tears she had not realized had fallen.

Sam charged through the woods, following the same path he had taken before as his collie self. Still shirtless, rogue branches tore at his exposed arms and chest, but he forced himself to continue running. Finally emerging at the attack site, he saw Isabella alone, struggling to stay standing a few yards from him.

"Izzy," Sam said breathlessly. He ran to her and wrapped his arms around her body from behind before she could fall. She immediately thrashed and whipped around to face him, her eyes shimmering with tears. "Izzy, stop. It's okay. It's me."

She stopped at the sound of Sam's calming voice, her eyes finally meeting his soft, cerulean orbs. Sighing, she allowed her body to melt into his chest, her anxiety immediately lessening as Sam's arms surrounded her.

"Jesus Christ, Izzy. What happened?" Sam's fingers gently combed through her hair, the scent of the earth still lingering in her brown locks. He took a step backward and lowered his head to examine her face, his fingers tracing her jawline. Tilting her head sideways, Sam examined the blood surrounding the two fang marks on her neck.

"Logan has fled," Bill's voiced called as he approached them. "He is younger than me, and therefore weaker." Both Sam and Isabella only stared at him in response. "Let me examine the wound," Bill said, attempting to use his most calming voice – the one he usually reserved for glamouring. Isabella clenched Sam's shoulder, her eyes narrowing as Bill reached for her arm.

She didn't protest, but she eyed Bill with caution as he lowered his head to inspect the fang marks. "It will heal faster if you let me tend to it," he explained, his mouth opening as it neared the bloodied skin of her neck. Isabella felt her breaths increase as Bill's cool tongue ran over the two fang marks, a nearly inaudible groan escaping his mouth as he tasted her blood for the first time. Slowly pulling away and rising to his full height, Bill backed away from her.

"We should call the police," Sam said quietly, his head turning from Bill to Isabella. She embraced him once more, her head resting beneath his chin. Her tired, beaten body was calmed by his warmth when his arms locked around her back.

"They can't do anything," she said quietly.

"I agree," Bill added. "There were no witnesses, and vampires do not leave any evidence. No fingerprints. No blood—"

"Calling the police will only make it worse for me," Isabella said, her head rising from Sam's chest to meet his eyes. "This was planned."

"If it was planned, then we need to do something about this." Sam brushed her cheek, then looked to Bill. "She was attacked. How is she ever supposed to feel safe?"

After a long pause, Bill spoke. "I will contact Eric."

* * *

Bill and Sam walked Isabella back to Merlotte's in silence. Aside from numerous contusions and bruises, Isabella escaped the fight with no major injuries. Thanks to Bill, the bite marks on her neck had already healed and disappeared.

Isabella knew she was safe with Sam and Bill as her escorts, but she didn't feel completely secure until Sam's fingers interlocked with hers, his warmth seeping into her skin and filling her with hope.

Not long after their return to Merlotte's, Sookie demanded Sam let her drive Isabella home. Sam agreed, although unwillingly leaving Isabella under Bill's protection. Bill ensured Sam he would keep both women safe and would guard Sookie's house for any remaining rogue vampires.

Upon hearing this, Isabella began to cry. The only thing preventing her from staking any vampire in her path was the compassionate vampire before her. As she stood in the parking lot with Sam and Sookie at her side, she surprised all life forms as she stepped forward and wrapped her arms around Bill's neck.

"Thank you," she whispered, the two words filled with enough emotion to bring a smile to Bill's face.

* * *

Isabella's thoughts clouded her mind as she silently entered her new home, Bill and Sookie close behind. She immediately retreated to the second level to shower, hoping the cascading water would wash away the memories of Logan's attack. When she entered her room in white shorts and a pink tank top, she found Sookie inside putting fresh sheets on her bed.

"I want you comfortable tonight," she told her. "And I don't want you to worry." She paused to fluff one of six pillows on Isabella's bed, then walked to her friend and hugged her. "Bill will be up all night to make sure nothing happens to you." She pulled away and ran a hand through Isabella's damp hair. "And I don't doubt that Sam'll be by in the morning to check on you."

Before Sookie could leave, Isabella hugged her friend once more, hoping the embrace could convey her appreciation. Within the next minute, Isabella was in bed in the dark, her eyes on the ceiling as the sounds of nature floated through her open windows.

Two hours later, her eyes shot open. Her sleep had not been dreamless, but the dreams were too bizarre to remain in her memory. She felt agitated, sore and restless, and her feet were carrying her out of her room within the next minute.

The house was silent and dark, but she knew Bill was awake. Tiptoeing downstairs, she unlocked and opened the front door to sit outside on the deck, just as she had her first night in Bon Temps. A light, damp wind greeted her skin and now dry, tousled hair.

Freshly cleaned sheets slapped against the breeze on a clothesline several feet away. The buzzes and chirps of other nighttime bugs filled her ears as she sat on the top step, her body aching as it contorted into a seated position.

As she sat in silence drinking in the night air, her thoughts flickered to Sam – how quickly he had come for her after Bill arrived. How safe and comforted she felt when his arms embraced her. She wanted that feeling back.

Isabella felt even more déjà vu of her first night in Bon Temps when a rustle of brush announced the appearance of the collie. It trotted toward her and stopped in front of the first step leading up to the porch. But for the first time, she was not pleased to see the animal.

"Now you show up," she said bitterly, her thoughts flashing back to the fight with Logan. The dog had briefly been loyal, growling at her side as if he would die to defend her. But it had vanished as soon as the real danger emerged. "What makes you think I still want you around?"

Isabella froze as the dog groaned, then began to morph into a completely different shape. Her eyes widened as the shivering limbs of a man began to penetrate the air where the dog had been.

She shot to her feet in awe as Sam's naked body now stood before her.


	8. The Shapeshifter and the Azzurra

**Chapter Eight – The Shape-shifter and The Azzurra  
**

**_Warning: _**_chapter contains strong sexual content._

"This is why I couldn't help you before . . . with Logan." Sam's voice was quiet. He didn't know what to make of Isabella's unchanging expression as her eyes thoroughly scanned him. "I hated leaving you. I didn't want to. But I couldn't help you as a dog, or even as me. So I got Bill. I just . . . I'm sorry, I'm so sorry."

Eyes wide, Isabella stared at Sam's naked form, her breaths increasing in frequency. "You're—"

In her awe, Isabella stepped off the edge of the staircase, her feet giving in to gravity as she tumbled sideways a few feet downward into the dirt. The laundry on the clothesline flapped in the wind, the sound like laughter mocking her fall.

"Izzy!" Sam called, jogging around the stairs. Isabella was already pushing herself up, ignoring the pain punching through her already sore body. "Are you okay?" Sam's blue eyes locked with hers as he approached her, his right hand already extended to caress her cheek. But she held out her hand to stop him.

"Jesus Christ, Sam." Isabella tried to focus on his face, but she couldn't avert her eyes from his dangling member. "I mean, I appreciate the dramatic entrance, but . . . I wanna talk to _you_ – not your penis."

Were it not for her wide-eyed look and her random gesticulations, Sam would have started laughing. Turning away from her momentarily, he hurried toward the clothesline of dry sheets, tore one off and wrapped it around his waist. He studied Isabella's body as he walked back toward her. He watched the bare skin of her chest raise and lower with each breath, her breasts covered by a black camisole. Completely still, she leaned against the house, her hands buried behind her back.

"So, you're a dog?" she asked, her voice more calm, as he stationed himself in front of her. Her eyes flicked downward at his abdomen, then at the sheet wrapped loosely around his waist.

"I'm a shape-shifter," he answered. "I can take the form of pretty much any animal, including the dog that, um . . ." He trailed off, but Isabella understood: the dog she had become familiar with throughout the past several weeks.

"So it was you on that first night? And you that would always run home with me?"

"Yes." He smiled and stepped forward to take her face into his hands. "At first I told myself that I did it just to make sure you were safe," he said quietly, "but I really just wanted to be with you." Sam nudged his nose against hers and softly sighed when he felt her fingertips trace his waist then wrap around his back.

She smiled back, relishing the flame of happiness that had ignited within her. He was different – like her – and suddenly, she didn't feel so alone.

"I didn't mean to freak you out when I kissed you before. And wanted to tell you about . . . me, I really did, but—"

Isabella eliminated the gap between their lips and kissed him, her eyes shutting as she met the warmth of his mouth. Running her hands up his bare arms, she brought her fingers to his jawline and massaged his lips with her own. Sam reacted immediately, his hands wrapping around her back as his tongue dared to enter her mouth. She parted her lips and let out a soft moan as the muscle thrust forward and met her own in a hungry dance.

Sam felt his groin twitch as her right hand began to slowly travel south, electrifying him as it caressed his skin. He broke their kiss to let out a moan as her hand slinked under the sheet and found his already hardening shaft. Her fingers ran down its length, and she felt it spring upward in her hand.

"God damn," he groaned, the pleasure bringing a smile to his lips. "You were the one that wanted me to cover up."

"And now I want to go inside," she teased, grinning at him before kissing his lips, her tongue lingering on his top lip. Sam felt his cock harden even more at the look she gave him – her eyes shining in the moonlight, gazing up at him with a deep lust.

"Lead the way."

Isabella grabbed his hand and slipped past him, rounding the staircase then hurrying up the steps with Sam close behind. When she reached the door, Sam let go of her hand and gripped her waist on both sides, pulling her backward so her ass could feel the hardening bulge in his pants. Isabella sighed when she felt the mound pushing into her rear, and the surge of pleasure that rocketed to her core made her dizzy. Sam smiled at her reaction, pleased that she wanted him as much as he wanted her.

She whipped open the door and grabbed his hand again, quickly shutting the door when they were inside then jogging upstairs. Isabella pushed Sam inside when they reached her room, then closed the door and locked it behind her.

When she turned around, she gasped as Sam pushed her against the back of the door and slipped his hands under her camisole. Yanking it over her head and tossing it to the floor, he crushed his lips to hers as his hands moved up her torso and massaged her ample breasts. The fleshy mounds were perfect, and her nipples reacted instantly under his touch. They felt glorious underneath his hands.

Isabella broke away from his mouth to moan when her nipples instantly hardened under Sam's fingers. Quickly moving her hands to his waist, she tore off the sheet, his dick springing outward when it was released.

Placing her hands on his chest, she playfully pushed him backward onto the bed, then crawled on the bed above him, her legs straddling his. Placing one hand on his abdomen, she lowered her head to his groin, her brown locks grazing the skin of his legs. His dick bobbed upward toward her mouth, and she delicately licked the tip.

He felt the brief, moist warmth from her tongue on his cock. The desire was agonizing. He wanted her mouth around him, completely devouring his length. She granted his wish. He felt her warmth surround the hard flesh as her mouth sucked on the tip. Her mouth filling with saliva, she slowly moved down the hardened shaft until her mouth was full.

"Oh, fuck, baby . . ." Sam groaned, his hips bucking upward to force more of his length into her. He nearly exploded when he felt the tip graze the back of her throat.

Resisting the urge to gag, Isabella pushed his hips away from her mouth and quickly sat up. But Sam rose with her and aggressively met her lips with his own. Gripping her waist, he threw her down onto the bed beside him then climbed on top of her.

"Sorry about that," he said softly between tastes of her lips. His left hand ran along her breast and abdomen, then pushed her white, cotton shorts and panties down her thighs. Beneath him, she raised her hips to kick off the final obstructions as her hand raked through his hair.

"It's fine," she breathed. "Guess I should take it as a compliment." She kissed him once more before pausing to smile at him. Sam grinned back. His kisses moved to her neck as his left hand snuck under her knee and pulled it up and away from her body. Isabella moaned, his hardened flesh pushing near her moist, awaiting mound.

She arched her back and pushed her pelvis into the pulsing stalk. "If you wait any more, I'll fucking kill you," she panted, a light laugh escaping her mouth at the end of her phrase. Although he remained silent, Isabella felt the air of his laughter brush along her neck between his kisses.

Sam reached between his legs and positioned the tip of his cock outside her dripping hole. Inhaling through his nostrils, he swore he could smell her feminine juices, like sweet nectar awaiting him. He pushed the tip inside of her, then pumped forward, cursing as he buried his entire length within her in one thrust.

Isabella's moan filled the room, and she willingly spread her legs wider beneath him. Sam began pumping at a steady, but aggressive rhythm. There was no sense in withholding his desire, and Isabella welcomed his passion. Her neck craned backward as she rose her hips to match the rhythm of his thrusts.

Sam's eyes squinted shut as he already neared his release, his continuous moans matching the pace of his movements. Isabella felt her inner walls begin to tighten, and she moved her hands to Sam's waist, guiding him deeper as she opened her legs even wider to him. The mounting pleasure from Sam's stiff rod abruptly coerced her release, and her winded moan filled the room.

"God damn," Sam said softly, her pulsating walls tempting him to quicken his pace even more. As his climax burst, he slammed into her one, final time and held his cock deep inside her silken hole until every drop of his seed was released.

As his head stopped swimming and returned to reality, he kissed Isabella's neck, proud to feel her legs quivering beneath him. He slowly pulled out and rolled onto his back beside her. Panting beside him, Isabella remained momentarily frozen in her recovery.

After catching her breath, she turned onto her side and rested her head beside Sam's, draping her left leg on top of his. Sam wrapped an arm around her and slowly ran his hand up and down her back. She closed her eyes and nuzzled close to his neck, breathing in his clean scent.

"Can I ask you something?" Sam asked softly, his fingertips still leisurely grazing along the smooth skin of her back.

"Hm?" she responded tiredly, her eyes remaining closed.

"What . . . are you?"

At that Isabella opened her eyes, paused, then raised her head so it was positioned only a few inches from his. Resting her hand near her temple to support the weight of her head, she stared back at him. "What do you want to know?" she asked softly.

"Just . . . about you. You know about me now. I wanna know about you." Sam turned on his side to face her, his delicate, stroking fingertips now moving to the curves of her waist.

Smiling slightly, Isabella was shocked at how comfortable she was with Sam – how perhaps telling him her secrets wouldn't be difficult at all.

"I doubt you've heard of my kind," she started, the small grin remaining on her face. Sighing, she continued. "I'm an Azzurra. A sort of enchantress or goddess. All of us are very beautiful and graceful and strong. And typically very seductive. Our looks and mannerisms help us get pretty much anything we want."

She paused, waiting for any of this to startle Sam, but he merely stared at her and listened. "Besides our strength, we have a few other . . . talents, I'll call them. We're pretty sexual creatures – we release intense pheromones that sort of call to the opposite sex. I even smell different to men based on what turns them on."

Sam smiled, finally realizing why she smelled so appealing all the time. "Where does the name come from?"

"'Azzurro' means 'blue' in Italian. All Azzurros have strikingly blue eyes. And since a major source of our . . . ability comes from our eyes, that's where the name comes from."

"What ability?"

"This one I'm not so proud of, although I have to admit it comes in handy. You know how vampires can glamour people?" she asked. Sam nodded. "Azzurros can do something called _Ipnotizzare_. Our eyes have the power to basically hypnotize people – like we're reaching out and taking hold of you with our eyes. Helps us get our way."

Sam reflected back on his time with her. "Have you ever done it to me?"

"I tried once." She smiled. "The first time I met you. But it didn't work. I guess I should have known better – it only works on humans."

"Did you get what you wanted from me?" he teased, sliding his hand along her thigh and running his fingertips along her warm crevice. Her body jerked in response amidst an outburst of laughter, and she immediately grabbed his hand. Gripping his wrist, she pushed his hand into the mattress. Still smiling, she leaned over him and kissed his lips, affectionately nudging her nose against his.

Of course, there was more she couldn't tell him yet.


	9. The Sheriff of Area Five

_I sincerely apologize to all of my readers for my long absence - hopefully this new chapter satisfies your Sam cravings. :)_

**Chapter 9 – The Sheriff of Area Five  
**_Warning: chapter contains strong sexual content._

Sam woke an hour later to Isabella's hand roaming south along the bare skin of his chest. Blinking several times to orient himself in the darkness, his eyes searched for her face in the blackened silence. Isabella's lips covered his as her hand found the soft flesh of his penis.

After a brief moment of confusion while her lips slowly massaged his, Sam decided she could wake him up for this anytime. He returned the kiss with earnest, his back rising slightly from the bed to return his affection more eagerly with his own lips.

But, distracted by the hand stroking his shaft, Sam fell backward onto the bed, his eyes squinting shut as a groan escaped his lips. Isabella's mouth moved to his chest, kissing the smooth skin while she lay on her side. Her hand continued its performance under the sheet, moving up and down the stalk, feeling it spring to life within her grasp.

She watched Sam's face, how his eyes seemed to be rolling back, even with his eyelids clenched shut. The twitches and swift shots of blood rushing to his cock seemed to coincide with his louder moans. Hearing the sounds of pleasure her strokes evoked from him caused her own body to tingle with anticipation.

"Baby . . ." Sam whispered hoarsely, rising again from the bed, his eyes finding hers shimmering in the darkness. His hands slid around her neck and pulled her to his lips. As his tongue slipped inside her mouth, his intense kiss drowned out the soft moan that tried to escape. With his hands so gently caressing her neck as he kissed her, Isabella's eroticism suddenly grew, her intimate closeness to Sam making her want him more.

She suddenly broke their kiss and pushed him backward into the bed. Quickly straddling his waist, she poised her moistened hole above his erect flesh. Briefly looking into his eyes, she grasped his cock and guided it into her hole, gasping at the feel of his warm, hard length inside of her.

Sam tried to stifle the moan in his throat as her velvety walls surrounded him. Positioning her hands on his chest, she leaned forward slightly and began to rock up and down on him, the pole sliding in and out with ease. She moved slowly, but Sam's desire to move faster drove his senses wild. Her controlled pace was pleasurable but maddening.

She rode him with deep lust, focusing on the aspects of her movements that seemed to elicit the most pleasure from Sam. She began to lower her hips with more earnest onto his shaft, allowing his length to be buried inside of her.

Isabella moaned his name as his cock repeatedly drilled into her slit, causing Sam to buck upward to meet her grinding hips. He watched her lips part and heard the sighs escape. A smile of pure pleasure appeared on her face even though her eyes remained closed. He felt her hands tense at their station on his chest. His hands slowly stroked her arms, moving upward along the warm skin until he reached her collarbone.

Her eyes popped open as his hands moved down from her neckline to her breasts, his fingers massaging the mounds, making several pauses to lightly pinch the hardened nipples between his fingers.

Sighing, a light laugh escaped her mouth as she began to speak. "If you keep doing that, I won't be able to sit up straight."

Sam smiled, especially upon feeling her thighs begin to quiver at their steady position on either side of his waist.

"I can always take over." Sam's right hand left her breast and moved downward along the perfectly toned skin until he reached her hot mound. His index finger completed the journey, sliding into the front of her crevice and flicking repeatedly across her clit.

Groaning, Isabella's quaking legs gave out from his rapid assault on her clit, and she fell forward, her breasts pushing into his chest as her hands tried to steady her position on top of him.

Sam laughed beneath her, causing the rhythm between their legs to momentarily stop.

"Oh, God," she moaned. "Stop laughing and just make me cum." He saw her smile before she kissed him, her hair falling in silky waves around his head. She tried to continue her grinding, but Sam continued for her. Bending his knees toward the ceiling, he bucked his hips upward, driving his shaft into her wide-open slit.

Rapidly nearing release, she groaned into his mouth. Breaking their kiss, she buried her face into his neck as he hammered into her, kissing his neck between moans. After only a few more seconds of thrusting, her loins exploded with ecstasy, her walls pulsing around him.

The pleasure was so overwhelming that her orgasm flowed through her in rapid waves for what felt like minutes until Sam's throbbing shaft met the same intensity of her release. Gripping her waist, he held her position as he thrust upward into her, his cock alive as it released his juices into her. He felt Isabella's hot breath on his neck as she panted, her legs still shuddering on either side of his waist.

Allowing herself a brief moment of recovery as her heavy breaths filled the room, her breasts still pressed into his chest, she collapsed on the bed beside him. Inhaling the clean scent of her sheets, she smiled as she found a comfortable position facing Sam. He was staring at her, his mouth slightly parted as his eyes studied her.

"What?" she said with a laugh. "I told you we were very sexual creatures."

Sam grinned and settled into the bed beside her, nudging his nose against hers. "I thought that was just an excuse to get me into bed."

Still smiling, Isabella reached for Sam's hand and held it lightly within her own. Comforted by her satisfied body and the warmth of his hand, she closed her eyes and entered a dreamless sleep, knowing Sam's eyes were watching over her.

* * *

Isabella awoke in what felt like minutes, Sam's body nudging the mattress to life as he moved on top of it. A soft, blue light blanketed the room, barely showing Sam's nude frame as he left the warmth of the bed. Isabella's shifted in his sudden absence, causing Sam to turn around.

"I gotta go," he said quietly. "It's almost dawn, and I don't have any clothes. And there are two more of my employees in this house. I'm guessing you don't want to explain to them why I'm naked in your bed."

"I don't even know if I can explain it," she said groggily, sitting up to face him as he sat down in front of her. Now that she had satisfied her arousal, Sam caught the buried anxiety in her tone, even in her tired state. He could almost hear the thoughts pouring out of her head: _did I really just sleep with my boss? _

"Get some sleep." Sam leaned forward and kissed her forehead, the delicate touch pleasantly numbing her body backward until she was nestled into her pillow. "I'll see you at the bar later."

* * *

It was hard not thinking about her all day.

It was even harder not to watch her every moment when she arrived for her shift in the early evening. Her hair was styled in effortless waves that fell down her back, and when she walked past him, the scent of her filled his nostrils. She flashed him a smile on her way to his office to store her belongings.

Sam paused his monotonous chore of drying glasses and watched her walk to the rear of the building. He casually tossed the towel over his shoulder as he studied how the toned lines of her legs gracefully carried her in the opposite direction.

Isabella hurried into Sam's office to deposit her purse in her storage cubby and grab her apron. Tying it around her waist on her way back out, she waved to Lafayette in the kitchen before hurrying into the bar to tend to her tables. She felt Sam's eyes on her immediately, the attention making her both nervous and excited.

Isabella paused mid-step when she saw the gorgeous vampire, the sculpted, dark-haired, dark-eyed male from the previous evening, sitting alone in her section.

"Relax." Sam appeared beside her, his sudden closeness making her jump. She turned her head to meet his warm smile and immediately relaxed.

"What makes you think I'm not?"

"Probably because you slept with your boss last night—"

"Sam!" she exclaimed in a throaty whisper. Her eyes wide, she glanced around to ensure no one heard him. Her reaction caused him to laugh.

"I'm just trying to make you smile, darlin'." Reading her nervous expression, he lowered his voice and decided on dropping his teasing tone. "I don't want you to be nervous around me."

"I'm not. I mean, I think we gotta work out … our situation. But I just …" Her elbow nudged in the direction of the vampire in her section, but Sam didn't seem to understand the true source of her anxiety. She couldn't concentrate with his bright blue eyes so focused on her. Sighing with a smile, she continued. "Can we talk later? Like after work?"

Sookie whisked past Sam and Isabella, her mind catching a severe jumble of thoughts erupting from both their heads. Sookie couldn't pinpoint the wisps of words flowing into her mind, but several swift, affectionate emotions made their way through the chaos. Sookie grinned to herself as she delivered a tray of drinks to one of her tables – perhaps Sam had made a move. Or maybe Isabella was the first to strike.

"Okay," Sam agreed, still smiling. "My trailer – after work."

Isabella smiled, taking a moment to admire the fit of Sam's jeans around his waist. He was wearing a short-sleeved, white and blue plaid shirt. The two buttons closest to the collar were undone, giving Isabella a peek at the body she had been exposed to the previous evening. Sam winked at her before turning around to walk back to the bar.

"Sam," she called, darting toward him. Her scent suddenly surrounding him, she stood on tiptoe and leaned close to his ear as if to tell him a secret. Sam's eyes widened, suddenly nervous she would kiss him in front of the entire bar. Her sweet smell tickled his nose, momentarily dizzying him. "You look nice," she whispered sensually into his ear before immediately pivoting on her heels and walking in the opposite direction. Sam smiled, her light laughter matching the playful bounce in her retreating figure.

Hoping to project her good mood onto her unavoidable requirement to service the sexy vampire in her section, she walked directly to his table.

"Evening," she said quickly, avoiding prolonged eye contact with the undead patron. The vampire maintained a soft smile, his dark chocolate eyes melting at her appearance.

"Good evening." His voice was clear and surprisingly pleasant – not the dull, menacing drone she was expecting.

"Sorry to keep you waiting." She felt her mouth twitch even as she said it. _Did I just apologize to a vampire?_

"No problem at all." He flashed her a blinding white smile. "I haven't been here long, and I believe your shift just started anyway."

"Yeah." She felt her eyebrow rise in a quizzical motion, surprised and slightly unnerved that he had been so observant of her presence. Shifting her weight, Isabella quickly studied the vampire. He was exceedingly fit in his living years, the sculpted muscles of his arms nicely filling out his rich, red t-shirt. Stylish blue jeans accompanied his outfit, completed by clean, white tennis shoes to match his smile. If there was such a thing as a trendy vampire, this one was it.

The vamp shifted backward in his seat, a crooked smile playing on his face. Holding up his hands in mock defense, he sensed her unease and spoke. "Whoa, there. The vampire did not mean to make you uncomfortable. But in my defense, I scarcely doubt I'm the only male in here who noticed your arrival."

"Is there something I can get for you?" she asked, ignoring his flirtatious statement.

"A TruBlood, please. Type O, if you have it." Leaning forward again, the vamp folded his hands together and smiled up at her, not at all phased by her lack of interest.

"Sure thing. I'll be right back with that." Even as she turned around, she felt the vamp's casual gaze follow her to the bar. Her body immediately became tense with her back to the undead predator. Even if he wasn't threatening, her body was warning her anyway.

"A TruBlood, please, Sam. Type O," she called over the bar to her boss. Smiling at her from across the bar, he retrieved the synthetic blood from the refrigerator and immediately placed it in the microwave to warm it up.

"Did you just politely serve that vampire?" Sookie asked, appearing at the bar beside her and poking her in the ribs. Isabella instantly laughed. "No punches or anything. I'm proud of you, Miss Isabella."

"Thanks," she said with a laugh. "But he hasn't left yet. You never know – I could still punch him."

"It'd be a real shame to punch anything that pretty," Sookie said, her eyes immediately glancing at the dark-haired vamp.

"No flirting with the customers. Especially the dead ones," Sam interrupted, placing the bottle of TruBlood on Isabella's empty tray. Flashing another smile at Isabella, he retreated to resume his other bartending duties.

_Only flirt with your shape-shifting boss_, Isabella thought with a private grin, her mind having a quick flashback to their late night, sexual rendezvous.

Sookie's head snapped in Isabella's direction, a flurry of Isabella's thoughts entering her mind. Sam kissing her, his body on top of her, her on top of him, passion, intense lovemaking … "Oh my God!" she finally said, her eyes wide.

"What?" Isabella asked, sensing the random urgency in Sookie's voice. Sookie suddenly grabbed Isabella's hand and yanked her out of sight near the entrance to the kitchen.

"You slept with Sam?" she whispered harshly, her hair shivering with life on her shoulders. The red color rushed to Isabella's face as her eyes widened.

"I …" She exhaled sharply through her nose. "How did you know?" she whispered back even quieter.

Sookie was now the one to pause. Many of the local Bon Temps residents suspected her ability, or at least assumed she was partially crazy, but she rarely openly admitted it to anyone. But it felt wrong so abruptly exposing Isabella and Sam's secret without an explanation as to her sudden knowledge. Besides, Isabella was different, too – perhaps her new friend would have an easier time understanding Sookie's differences.

"I can read thoughts," she finally replied. "I'm a telepath."

Isabella raked her fingers through her hair then dropped her hands to her sides. "First Sam's a shape-shifter, and now you read minds? How-how do you—"

"I just can," she said with a shrug.

"So just now, you heard me thinking about Sam?"

"Sort of. I saw images mostly," she explained, briefly avoiding eye contact with Isabella. The images had been quite private, after all. "You're a little harder to read. Sam, too. I think it has something to do with your own … abilities."

"Izzy! This TruBlood's getting' cold!" Sam called from the bar. Both Isabella and Sookie looked in the direction of Sam's voice.

"I gotta get back out there, but can you just promise me you'll explain more about this telepathy thing later? And you won't tell anyone, will you? About me and Sam?" Isabella asked, her eyes pleading. "He's … we're still trying to figure out what we're doing, I guess."

"You're secret's safe with me." She smiled at her friend, hoping to convey that she meant her promise. They had each shared a secret tonight, even if Sookie was the one to reveal them. "I get off in a few minutes, but we can talk more later."

"I may um, be at Sam's later," she said, biting her lip.

"I see," Sookie replied, nodding her head as her smile gradually spread across her face. "Well, tomorrow then."

"Thanks, Sook." Isabella gave her friend a quick hug, then hurried back to her cooling bottle of TruBlood to deliver it to her vamp customer. Carrying the tray to his table, the vampire focused on her eyes as she placed the bottle of blood in front of him.

"Thank you," he said quietly, the corners of his mouth curving upward to flash her his perfectly white smile. Isabella tried to ignore her body's conflicting emotions – a part of her enjoyed his attention and visual appeal, but the other part wanted to slap him just so he'd stop looking at her.

"Sorry for the wait. Enjoy." She nodded and turned around to leave him to his beverage. But instead of moving forward, her eyes met the chest of an extremely tall vampire dressed entirely in black. His close proximity startled her, and she jumped backward in response, her tray falling from her hands and colliding loudly with the floor.

"Isabella," the vampire said, his expression indifferent to her startled state. Inhaling through his nose, he closed his eyes, savoring her scent. "You smell very appetizing."

Isabella took a step back, and was even more shocked when the dark-haired vampire stood up beside her, his quick movements multiplying her nerves.

"I think you should back off. You're making her nervous."

"Sit down, nomad. This doesn't concern you," the blonde vampire said quietly, his eyes not leaving Isabella's face. Although he was not loud, his tone was deadly, and the dark-haired vampire backed away from Isabella, but did not sit down.

Bill was the latest to join the rapidly growing entourage of vampires. By now, the majority of the bar was watching them, their lips moving in rapid whispers. Isabella spotted Sam walking toward them, aggression evident even in his footsteps.

"Isabella, this is Eric Northman, the sheriff of area five," Bill explained.

"And what the hell does that mean?" Isabella snapped, not enjoying the attention Eric's eyes were devoting to her body.

"It means I am a very important vampire, and you should be grateful I'm taking time out of my evening to speak with you." Eric remained expressionless, but he had to force back a smile at Isabella's seething facial expression.

"Is there a problem here?" Sam asked, standing beside Isabella, his eyes flicking from Bill to Eric.

"Not yet," Eric said, his eyes flicking to Sam before returning to Isabella.

"Sam, Eric would like to speak to Isabella," Bill explained more tactfully. "About the previous evening's events. Would it be possible to pull her away from her duties for a few minutes?"

"I'd actually like it if we could all speak in my office," Sam said, his intense tone indicating his own anger was about to bubble over. He gestured for Isabella and he two vampires to walk toward the privacy of his office in the rear of the bar.

Now alone at his table, the nomad vampire watched the foursome disappear, gritting his teeth in frustration.

Sam thundered after Isabella, Eric and Bill, ignoring the rapidly growing volume of whispers that followed his exit. Slamming his office door shut behind him, Sam was the first to speak. "This is not your goddamn vampire bar, and she is not one of your minions," he spat.

"Thank you for the welcome, shifter," Eric replied sarcastically. "I have left my establishment at the request of Mr. Compton and as a favor to this … creature," Eric said, his eyes flicking to Isabella. "She should be honored I'm here."

"Forgive me, _Sheriff_, but I don't exactly follow your vampire jurisdiction bullshit." Isabella rolled her eyes, a reaction Eric not only noticed, but also briefly smiled at. "But apparently this _is_ your jurisdiction. So, since responding to my near-death experience is such an inconvenience for you, can we just get this over with so I can get back to work?"

Eric turned to Bill, lifting an eyebrow at his subordinate. "I like her, Bill. Have you tasted her yet?"

"Enough," Sam interjected. "What do you want?"

Eric sighed. "Shifter, I'm very busy, I'm very annoyed, and I'm very irritated by your abnormal smell. It's tainting the aroma of your female companion."

Sam tensed as his anger released into his muscles. Without thought, he launched himself toward Eric, but Bill immediately cut him off. Eric didn't even flinch.

"I do not intend to hurt your employee," Eric explained, his voice projecting a hint of softness. "I simply intend to ask her a few questions about the vampire who attacked her last night, considering the attack did take place in my territory. I would like to know if I have a poacher on my hands. The sooner you leave this room and let me get on with my questioning, the sooner I will leave."

Glancing at Isabella, Sam tried to convey his frustration to her. Her returned gaze was pleading – _just let me get this over with_, her eyes told him.

"And I can't be in the room?" Sam asked with annoyance, already predicting Eric's answer.

"No. I don't want any distractions. No interruptions. And seeing as this a vampire matter in my area, which _I_ must remedy, I do not believe your departure from this room is too much to ask."

Exhaling loudly through his nostrils, Sam unwillingly caved. "Five minutes. And I'll be standing right outside." Glancing from Eric to Isabella, Sam threw open the door and exited the room, Bill at his heels.

As soon as the door clicked shut, Eric's head shifted to study Isabella. Clasping his hands behind his back, he slowly walked toward her, his eyes unblinking. Her own scrutiny of Eric was equally intense. At around six-foot-five, Eric towered above her, making his arrogance all the more evident. His all-black attire contrasted with his pale skin, and his persistent, domineering behavior demanded compliance. His blonde hair was slicked back atop his head, exposing the vibrant color of his bright, blue eyes.

Eric was the one to break the silence. "You are not fully human, are you?"

"You wanted to question the attack last night, not my genetic makeup."

"Oh, I know all about the attack. Bill filled me in." Eric craned his neck toward her and inhaled a long, deep breath through his nostrils.

"Bill told you about Logan?" Isabella asked, desperately trying to ignore Eric's obvious attraction to her scent.

"Yes," he sighed. "Logan attacked you, you fought back, Bill intervened, blah, blah, blah." His hand appeared near her shoulder and grasped a flowing strand of her shiny, brown hair. Isabella flinched, her irritation over his unnecessary advances growing at an exponential rate. Delicately lifting the strand upward, Eric commenced another deep inhalation through his nose, his eyes closing as his mouth began to water.

"Stop it," Isabella demanded, smacking Eric's hand away from her hair.

Eric actually laughed, triggering Isabella's face to redden in rage. "I don't think it's too far-fetched to believe your genetic composition has something to do with the attack. You are very desirable to many of our senses. Humans become monotonous after a while, and you have a very severe appeal on our sight and smell. No doubt taste, too."

Burying her fury into her stomach, she forced herself to continue. "And don't you think Logan wanted something else from me besides my blood?" The timbre of her voice changed, clearly showcasing her aggression.

"Yes, he wanted to fuck you," he replied nonchalantly.

"Jesus Christ, besides that," she said loudly. "He wanted something else. If he wanted to kill me, he would have killed me."

"I agree."

"So as sheriff, you're required to help me?"

"I'm required to ensure the prosperity of my area. Which I can do easily, I assure you. But if you'd like me to help you in the process, I will require something from you in return." The teasing smile lit up the remainder of Eric's features, and he stepped directly in front of her, causing the air in Isabella's lungs to lodge in her throat.

"Figures," she said quietly, although the unease in her voice was obvious. Eric was far too close for comfort, his cool hands slowly gliding up her arms and resting on her shoulders. His touch silenced her, and her arms began to shiver in fury. Ensuring this problem was solved meant allowing Eric to have power over her. The thought enraged her, causing her blood to pump wildly through her veins, a response Eric no doubt noticed. She suddenly felt lightheaded, her emotions overwhelming her brain.

"So, what, you'll figure out why Logan wants me, and then call up a favor from me whenever you want to?"

"Sounds about right," Eric agreed, the flirtatious grin still pulling at his thin, moistened lips. In fact …" He paused, his neck creeping lower until his eyes were poised just above her own.

His hands continued their journey upward across her skin until his fingertips pressed into her warm neck. Her pulse throbbed violently beneath his touch, and Eric felt the appropriate response in his groin. Isabella's limbs were shuddering around him, her body wanting nothing more than to send him flying backward into the wall. But if he was truly offering his help, she had no choice.

Eric lowered his head as his thumbs began to trace her jaw line. As his lips parted just inches from hers, Isabella froze when Eric's fangs erupted from within his mouth.


	10. Have a Drink on Me

**Chapter 10 – Have a Drink on Me**

Isabella held her breath as Eric's open mouth lowered to within an inch of hers. Her eyes flicked to his fangs before moving just as quickly back to his blue eyes. She tilted her head backward, wanting her entire body, and especially her mouth, as far away from him as possible.

His hunger fueled his movements, which he forced to slow down – to savor her scent – despite his excitement. Eric dipped forward even more, his tongue slipping from his mouth when Isabella couldn't back away any farther. Although her lips were clamped tightly shut, the cool muscle licked her bottom lip, causing a rigid shiver to course through her body.

Eric closed his eyes as his tongue relished her sweetness. Her flavor instantly aroused each of his senses with even more power than the most tantalizing blood. As he savored his brief taste, he attempted to suppress the guttural groan in his throat.

Isabella finally drew a ragged breath, but her body remained unwillingly poised under Eric's dominating figure.

As the taste disappeared from his tongue, Eric froze in place. His eyes snapped open.

"I think I'll call up my favor some other time," he said quietly, a teasing grin causing Isabella's eyes to narrow. Suddenly, Eric was at the door to Sam's office, his hand on the knob. "Farewell, Isabella." In another flash, he was gone.

Isabella was paralyzed at Sam's desk, her hands gripping the edge behind her so hard they were beginning to cramp. Her lungs finally began to operate more normally, the air entering and exiting in rapid bursts.

* * *

"Nomad." Eric strode past the dark-haired vampire's table, his eyes flicking in his direction. Beckoning him to follow, Eric's long strides continued toward the exit. Casually rising from his seat, the nomad followed. His eyes showed caution while his limbs carried him purposefully to the exit.

As he exited the bar, mere seconds after Eric, only a trace of Eric's scent was left. The nomad inhaled through his nose as he glanced around the still parking lot, then bolted in the direction of the scent. The tree limbs and their delicate leaves shuddered as he ran past them, his speed far exceeding that of a violent breeze. The direction of the scent changed several times, but his well-trained nose easily followed its sudden shifts. Seconds later, he was draped within the protection of dense, green foliage, just feet from Eric.

"Sheriff," he acknowledged, nodding his head respectfully. The sheriff stood in front of a wide tree trunk, his body still as his eyes analyzed the nomad. His hands were clasped behind his back in a semi-casual state.

"Excellent tracking skills," Eric commented. The nomad nodded in reply. "Your age?" His question was more of a demand.

"Just short of one thousand years. I was made vampire when I was twenty-two human years old. During the Middle Ages near Rome."

"What is your name?" Eric asked, his tone a quiet meld of menace and dominance.

"Seth Black," the vampire responded, remaining as immobile as Eric.

"And when were you planning on alerting me to your presence in my territory?" Only Eric's lips moved, his blue eyes frozen on Seth.

"I only arrived last night. I wasn't even sure I was staying," Seth replied, his tone remaining casual even though he suspected the sheriff's bubbling anger.

"It seems you have stayed. And it seems you're patronizing this human bar instead of the vampire bar owned by not only the sheriff of this territory, but a vampire nearly 100 years your elder." Eric's head craned forward toward Seth, his tone ominously quiet.

"The vampire bar in Shreveport is yours?" Seth asked.

"Yes. And you will be there tonight and twice a week for every remaining week you are in my territory." Eric's hands now lingered in fists at his side as he took a single step toward Seth.

Irritated by Eric's arrogance, Seth's eyes darkened. He understood Eric's request. A vampire presence at Fangtasia meant more curious patrons. And more patrons meant more income for the owner. Although usually respectful of the territorial rules set by his elders, Eric, in this case, was barely older than him. Seth felt his predatorial instincts begin to shiver through his veins. "And if I respectfully refuse?"

Fangs bursting, Eric lunged forward, the blur of colors reforming as his face appeared in front of Seth's. "I do not like repeating myself, and I do not give second chances." Eric's voice lowered, and the air became still. "And as far as you interrupting my conversation with the waitress inside, do not ever fucking interfere in my business again."

Seth didn't flinch.

* * *

Sam burst into his office, shoving the door shut behind him. "You okay?" His voice was quiet and anxious at first, but he cringed upon seeing how Isabella's pale, frightened face accentuated her wide blue eyes. "What did he do?" Sam hurried in front of her frozen figure, and his hands moved from her face, to her arms, to her waist, quickly assessing her body for injuries.

"I'm fine, Sam," Isabella responded quietly, grabbing his wrist as she rose to her full height. "He didn't do anything."

"He fuckin' did something, Izzy. I mean, Jesus Christ. How was that at all helping you with what happened last night with Logan?" he asked angrily, his hands awkwardly pausing in midair, questioning their placement – around her back? Not touching her at all? His anger battled his desire to comfort, and his hands finally dropped to his side.

"He just wants me to know he's in charge. He's helping me, but he's a vampire. So he's not helping me for nothing."

Sam let out a frustrated sigh, understanding Eric's expectations of Isabella's debt. "That's absolute bull shit." His voice was dangerously quiet, but rose very abruptly. "Fuck him! We can figure this out on our own." His dirty blond hair shook as he swore, causing Isabella to flinch. "I am not willing to let him take what he wants, whenever he wants it! And there ain't no way in hell you're going to give him a goddamn thing!" Enraged, he unintentionally dealt her the cold glare he meant to deliver to Eric.

"You're not the one that has to pay back the debt, y'know. It's me!" she said fiercely, her eyes glaring back. "I'm not happy about it either, but I don't even know what he wants me to do. He could be completely messing with me. So how the _hell_ is you getting mad at me going to fix anything?"

Wanting nothing more than to leave her encounter with Eric behind, Isabella glided past Sam, whipped the door open and slid outside, slamming it shut before he could follow her. Ignoring his muffled shouts calling after her, she adjusted her uniform top as she bustled back into the bar.

Overwhelmed by Eric's power over her and Sam's protective fury, she felt close to tears. As the salty water burned her eyes, she did her best to bury the anxiety.

"Fuck!" In his office, Sam cursed and kicked over the chair stationed in front of his desk. Raking his hands through his hair, he attempted to subdue the frustration rippling through his muscles. He hadn't intended to anger her, but she was far too stubborn to accept his help.

Scowling, he threw open the door, trailing after her scent. _Gardenias and fresh rain today._ Dealing with the sheriff left her more pissed off than him, and if he was legitimately considering her as more than just a lover, he had to somewhat subdue his anger to take on the role of comforting boyfriend. _Can I even call myself that?_

Sam surveyed his surroundings as he re-entered the bar. Thankfully, Eric had left, but Isabella's anger was evident through her silence. Her eyes briefly met his, but she quickly tossed her head and walked in the opposite direction.

_Silent treatment. We're sure's hell fighting like a goddamn couple. _Sam stationed himself behind the bar, but his eyes followed Isabella as she stopped to wait on one of her tables.

Mustering a smile, Isabella mindlessly took the orders of the two couples at the booth, then hurried to the kitchen window to drop off the order for Lafayette.

"What happened to your glow, baby girl?" Lafayette asked, a smirk on his face as he took the slip of paper from her.

"My glow?" she repeated. "What the hell have you been smoking, Laf?"

"Somethin's missing with you tonight. You usually got a glow about you. Makes you extra delicious for all them sexual deviants out there." He offered her a grin when her face remained blank.

"Sounds like a backhanded way of saying I look like shit." She slapped the piece of paper with the order down on the counter and snapped her head around, quickly walking away toward the bar.

"Just tryin' to lighten your nasty-ass mood," Lafayette called after her. "Your cheeks is gonna start looking like a pair of wrinkly old balls if you keep all that damn frownin' up."

Sighing in frustration, Isabella craved a shower. She'd even take standing outside in a rainstorm. Anyplace where the water could wash away the angst and calm her tense muscles.

The handsome vampire slipped back into the bar, his narrow eyes catching Isabella's gaze and he swiftly glided back toward his table. His fuming aura drew in a cautious gaze from the Merlotte's customers, including Sam, who gave him a wary stare from behind the bar. No one could ignore his fury, but many eyes quickly returned their attention to their plates of food or their companions.

Isabella, however, slowly walked over to the table, the nomad vampire's seething anger curiously bonding with hers. Perhaps it was his alluring appearance that drew her closer. But judging by his brief confrontation with the sheriff earlier, she suspected Eric Northman was the source of his anger. Her eyes remained on him as he stood in front of the table and withdrew a wallet from his back pocket.

"You want another drink?" Her voice was calm as she appeared next to him.

The vampire turned to face her, and his eyes immediately softened. He did not smile, but her appearance didn't make him angrier.

"No, thanks. Gotta hit the road." The vampire maintained eye contact and dropped a bill on the table.

"What's your name?"

"Seth." He cracked a smile and subtly inhaled her scent. "Thanks for the drink. I'll see you around."

Isabella's eyes followed the vampire's thin frame as he left the bar, then flicked to the twenty-dollar tip he left on the table. Pocketing the bill, she collected the empty Tru Blood bottle. When she turned around, she collided with a body and fury of flaming red hair.

"Oh, Isabella, I'm sorry," Arlene fluttered, her normally soft face crunched in anxiety.

"It's okay, Arlene. Somethin' wrong?"

"I didn't mean to startle you, but have you seen Tara? She hasn't come back from her break yet. I'm already coverin' two sections, and I need her help—"

"Take it easy, Arlene." Sam appeared at Isabella's side, his hand brushing the small of her back. "I'll help you cover your sections. Izzy, can you check outside for Tara? She's probably just on the phone."

Isabella nodded and jogged toward the door. A lot of workers took their breaks in a private area of the parking lot several yards away from the bar. Secluded by a handful of dense tree cover, Sam had built a bench under the protected overhang of the branches. During the daytime, Sookie usually sat on the bench and read one of her romance novels. She called the semi-private, wooded nook her "sweet spot." Arlene and Tara most often used the sweet spot to sit and gab on their cell phones. No doubt that's where Tara was now.

The parking lot was nearly silent when she exited Merlotte's. Even the normal song of the Bon Temps insects and bugs had softened to a dull hum. As she neared the sweet spot, her ears listened for her colorful voice. Her sense of sight was her only guide. And what she saw made her freeze.

Tara's body was limp and bloody on the ground, and Eric was crouched above her.

"Oh my God." Blood dripped from Tara's forehead and mouth, and her clothes were dirty and rumpled, as if she had been lying on the ground for some time.

Enraged, Isabella bolted toward them and lunged for Eric. "Get away from her!" Tackling the oversized blonde vampire was foolish, and she was instantly pinned to the dirt beneath him, his intense blue eyes boring into hers.

"I didn't do this," he said quietly. Honest emotion caressed Eric's words, the first she had sensed from him since they'd met. "I smelled the blood, and I found her."

"Get off of me." She shoved Eric's chest, and he willingly moved aside. Isabella knelt in the dirt beside Tara, the visible blood and bruises creating an instant tightness in Isabella's chest. Her face flushed, and the tears came to her eyes with little restraint.

"I've already called your human police."

Acknowledging his words, she continued to stare in horror at her friend. "Jesus Christ, Tara." Isabella's hands gingerly moved across Tara's body, assessing it for deadly injuries. Thankfully, she found none. But Tara wasn't moving. Even her chest remained still. "Tara, please open your eyes." Hoping to resuscitate her, Isabella tilted her friend's head back and pinched her nose shut. Ignoring the blood oozing from Tara's mouth, Isabella lowered her head to blow a swift puff of air into her lungs.

Before she could fully expel the breath, Eric yanked her away from Tara's body, his tight grip on her arm forcing her to meet his eyes.

"Stop," he commanded.

"Fuck you! I'm trying to help her!"

"I already have," Eric said quietly, presenting his arm. The open wound near his wrist was already healing, but Isabella's sudden realization made her stomach tighten.

The blood on Tara's mouth was Eric's. Not Tara's. And she had just put her mouth all over it.

Her thoughts raged. Surely she had accidentally swallowed some of the blood. Eric was now a part of her. He would feel her, know where she was, influence her …

"I tried to stop you," he offered, his body stationed calmly beside her.

Isabella slapped Eric as hard as she could across his face, her hand stinging from the abrupt contact. Eric's head whipped to the left, but he showed no indication of pain.

The police sirens began to wail in the distance, and patrons began rushing outside as the police cars and ambulance entered the Merlotte's parking lot. Isabella repeatedly spat in the dirt, obsessively wiping her mouth as if removing the physical evidence of Eric's blood would dispel his blood's influence from her body.

Eric left the women to summon the medical crew, and Isabella tried to focus on her injured friend. She held Tara's hand as she began to regain consciousness, but the medical staff quickly shooed Isabella away.

After detective Andy Bellefleur briefed Sam on the incident in the parking lot and Tara's physical status, Sam pushed his way through the crowd of gawking patrons. He found Isabella standing alone, quietly observing the emergency team while hugging her arms to her chest. He jogged over to her, the sound of his oncoming footsteps pulling Isabella out of her trance.

Sam pulled her into his body for a tight embrace, and she instantly locked her arms around his neck. "Everything's okay. You're okay," he assured her, planting a quick, but delicate, kiss on her temple. "Tara's gonna be just fine, too. We're gonna find out who did this."

"I should call Sookie. And does Lafayette know? What about Tara's family? Her mom and—"

"I'll take care of that," Sam said, gripping Isabella's shoulders and curling her dark hair around her ears. "Why don't you go on over to my trailer and wait inside for me." Sam dug inside his pocket and handed her a set of keys. "I'm closin' up early, and I'll meet you inside in a while. Just try and relax or lie down for a while."

Isabella watched the emergency medical team lift Tara into the ambulance on a stretcher, even though she was much more awake and healthy than before, thanks to the blood Eric had force-fed her.

"Go on." Sam kissed her forehead and nodded toward his trailer, then turned around to return to the bar.

As the crowd began to disperse, Isabella walked to Sam's trailer and let herself in. Mindlessly glancing around, she assessed Sam's home. It was bigger than she expected it to be. The kitchen was on her right – generally clean despite a few used dishes lying on the counter. To her left was a sitting area with a couch, which she bypassed for the bathroom.

Stripping without thought, she turned on the shower and immersed herself in the hot water. Her mind kept replaying the evening's events through bright snapshots in her mind. The thoughts made her sick. Made her feel dirty, even as she washed and re-washed her skin. Vampires had taken her blood before, but she had never ingested any.

She stood underneath the streaming water until it felt numb on her skin. Until her fingers and toes had wrinkled from the moisture.

She would have remained there, had the door not suddenly opened. Sam reached his hand inside and turned off the water. Standing outside the door, he wordlessly held open a large, blue towel, beckoning her to exit the shower.

Isabella complied, gingerly stepping out of the shower and allowing Sam to wrap the fluffy towel around her bare curves. He held the towel closed around her back, his eyes locked on hers as he pulled her moist, warm body against his own.

He closed his eyes as he breathed in her clean skin, feeling the heat radiate from her flesh. Nudging his nose against hers, he brushed his lips across her cheek, then moved to her mouth. He massaged the flesh with delicate passion, her lips eager to return his emotion.

Pausing to breathe, Sam was the first to speak. "Let's go to bed."


	11. Connections

_**Author's note**__: My sincerest apologies for my (very) long absence. There are some truly fabulous readers out there (like you!), and I hate disappointing you from my lack of updates. Please forgive me and know that yes, I am still writing! I truly hope you enjoy this chapter. _

_And before we get started, I must send a vile of V-juice love to my wonderful reviewers: _Spook69, SexySadie88, hippolove844, Superdani akaVioletFairchild_, and a Viking-sized special thanks for the best review I've ever received from _TheJewellersHand_._

**Chapter 11 – Connections**_**  
Warning**__: this chapter contains strong, sexual content._

_"Why do you hate us so much?" Eric asked with a slight grin, his blue eyes glistening as he sat beside her on the handmade, wooden bench. They were in the "sweet spot" outside Merlotte's, protected and secluded under the lush, green drapery of the trees._

_"You vamps are all assholes, and you know it." Isabella tried to hide her smile as she stared at a knot in the wood beside her head. She was on the far side of the bench sitting sideways, her bare legs casually draped across his thighs. Her body shivered when Eric's cool hand curled a loose strand of shiny, brown hair around her ear. _

_She focused her smile back at Eric, cocking her head to the side as she examined the creases of his grin. A thin wisp of his blonde hair fell loose from its normal, slicked-back position atop his head, teasing her fingers to touch it as it dangled close to his twinkling eyes. Even in the darkness of the night, he looked gorgeous, his sexiness swimming in the dense air around them. _

_Her playful statement made Eric's grin widen. One of his hands was stationed near her calf and began slinking up her leg, his palm and fingertips tingling as it ran across her perfectly smooth skin. The other hand near her ear delicately brushed her cheek before moving to her mouth, his thumb like marble as it stroked her bottom lip. _

_"We just know what we want," Eric replied, his white smile catching a glint of moonlight. Isabella's lips parted under the sensual touch of his thumb, and Eric slowly slipped the appendage inside her warm, awaiting mouth. _

_She heard the snap of his erupting fangs when her mouth closed around his thumb, her tongue swirling around the cool flesh. _

_He instantly gave in to the growing reaction in the front of his pants. In another second, Eric was on top of her, and her gasp filled the night when she felt his frozen hand suddenly buried within her panties, his fingers poised at the entrance to her heated opening. _

_"And I want you," Eric breathed, his eyes earnest and devoted as they stared at her. "Only you." He crushed his lips to hers, kissing her with a passion burning from his core. Her hand ran through his blonde locks, grasping them tightly to draw him closer to her. Some of the silky strands slipped through her fingers and brushed against her temple as his lips eagerly massaged hers._

_Eric's long, slender, middle finger pushed into her moist hole, causing Isabella to break their kiss to moan. The noise echoed in Eric's ear, and he felt his sexual drive begin to fully rule his body as her warm juices coated his finger. With blinding speed, he freed his hardened shaft in another instant. As he hungrily tore off her shorts and panties, Isabella clung to his body, craving release from his massive pole._

_Shoving her legs apart, Eric plunged into her as far as he could go. His pleasured growl covered up her scream, his head flying backward as his cock relished being buried deep with her tight, vibrating walls. _

_When she cried out his name, he could no longer hold back. As he began pounding into her, she craned her head to the side, allowing him open access to her neck. He released another pleasured growl, his eyes wide and frantic at the thought of tasting her. Isabella screamed again when he drove his fangs into her neck's hot flesh._

Isabella's eyes shot open, her body's own jolt startling her already elevated nerves. Her eyes scanned the quiet, dimly lit surroundings, her mind finally recognizing Sam's bedroom amidst the dull, blue-gray light.

And the rest of the previous evening flooded back: the attack on Tara, Eric intervening, and ultimately, Isabella's accidental intake of Eric's blood.

_Which is what brought on this nasty fucking dream_. Even the thought was grumbled in her head. She squinted her eyes shut, hoping to expel the memory of the Eric Northman sex dream from her thoughts. _Ew, ew, ew!_ Even though her back was to Sam, she tried to concentrate on the slow, steady breathing of his deep sleep.

But the memory of Eric's passionate groans would drown it out.

_Stop it! STOP IT!_ She scolded her body for being even remotely turned on by the dream, and worse yet, for not allowing the nightmare to easily slip from her memory. _Nasty-ass vampire blood. Sick, sick SICK!_ Her entire body felt flushed, yet cold at the same time, her limbs frozen with disgust, yet tingling with energy.

Running. She really wanted to run. To run to Sookie's and check on Tara. To feel the cool, morning air glide over her skin and to plea for the breeze to capture her dream and carry it away. It was just after five o'clock in the morning, which meant dawn was breaking, and no vampires would be running around outside with her.

She listened again for Sam's breaths. Still slow and steady. Carefully removing the covers, Isabella slinked out of his bed, turning around to ensure she hadn't disturbed him. She felt the corners of her mouth tickle upward at the sight of his tangled head of hair pointing in various directions. His bare chest moved out and in, and his eyes danced under his lids, his subconscious working overtime amidst his deep sleep.

_His dreams can't be any worse than mine._ Even as her mind thought it, she felt guilty. Tara was the one who had experienced the attack, yet Isabella was whining as she willingly left the comfort and support of Sam's bed. And Sam himself. He had calmed her and allowed her to take solace in his home, just as Sookie and Tara had just weeks ago.

She slipped off the shirt Sam had loaned her and quietly dressed in her own clothes. When Sam had returned to the trailer that evening after Tara's attack, he brought with him a cinch bag that Sookie had dropped off at the bar. Isabella assumed Sam had told Sookie how shaken up she was, and Sookie had returned to Merlotte's with the bag shortly after Sam called her with the news about Tara. Inside the bag was a spare outfit: jean shorts and a pale, yellow tank top. Not wanting to jog in the jeans, Isabella put on the black shorts she often wore with her Merlotte's uniform, followed by a bra and the tank top.

Sam let out a soft grumble in his sleep, the sound similar to a puppy's whine. Isabella tiptoed over to the side of the bed where he lay still. He had been nuzzled behind her in bed, but his back was to her now as his restful slumber continued. It felt almost cruel to leave him. But her guilt and worry over Tara overruled her desire to stay with him.

They had not had sex. They had hardly spoken. But Sam cared for her using his actions, dressing her in one of his shirts before lying down in bed with her. And when his arm slipped around her from behind, drawing her close to his warm body, the stress of the night seemed to evaporate from her mind, and she fell asleep almost instantly.

She wished she was still beside him, but she couldn't relax until she could see Tara. And make amends. Isabella felt like the attack was her fault. What if the culprit was Logan? She didn't have proof yet, but who else would want to harm her? Even indirectly?

Despite her worry, Isabella knew that Tara was physically fine, especially after a hospital visit. In the brief moments Isabella and Sam had spoken that evening, he told her that Sookie called him twice to give him updates on Tara's condition, and by the third call, Tara was already on her way home. Eric's vampire blood had healed her fast.

Guilt weighed her down even more. _I should have been there. I should have helped more. I should have gone with Tara in the ambulance. I should be beside her bed now, apologizing …_

_I, I, I! _her head screamed. _Stop being so goddamn selfish!_

Isabella scribbled a note to Sam and stole one final glance at his sleeping body before quietly leaving the trailer. As the sun began to peek over the horizon, she began her jog to the Sookie's house.

* * *

She never slowed her run, even as she practically collided with the locked front door. Her purse, including her phone and house keys, was still locked in Merlotte's.

"Sookie?" she called, knocking on the door, her heavy breaths hard to stifle. After several seconds, the door opened, Jason's startled facial expression welcoming her home.

"Isabella," he said quietly, his blonde hair tousled, no doubt from a long night awake with his sister. "You all right? Where have you been?" His eyebrows were crooked as he stepped aside to let her in, the chocolaty orbs studying her. Apparently her jog hadn't masked her worry.

"I'm okay. I was just too freaked out before. Sam didn't want me going anywhere by myself," she half lied. "How's Tara? Where is she?" she asked, quickly changing the route of the conversation.

Jason shut the door and faced her, shoving his hands into the front pockets of his gray, hooded sweatshirt. "She's fine. Sleeping right now. Not a scratch on her."

"On the surface anyway," another voice added. Isabella recognized Lafayette's peaceful droll before she met his gaze. He was sitting on the couch in the living room, watching her and Jason near the doorway. "She ain't too happy about having that V inside of her, even if it did keep her ass alive."

Isabella cringed, anxiety prompting her limbs to take action. "I need to see her," she said quietly, brushing past Jason and heading for the stairs.

"Hookah, just let her rest!" Lafayette called after Isabella as she jogged up the stairs. Ignoring his comment, she charged to the summit, meeting Sookie's kind eyes as she reached the top step.

"Sook," she sighed, her stress and worry spilling out of her as she saw her friend. Isabella embraced her for a tight hug, and she was thankful Sookie hugged her back just as fiercely.

"Where have you been?" she asked, her tone worried, not accusatory.

"I feel … just awful. Like a really fuckin' horrible person. I should have been there … to help Tara," she mumbled, resting her chin on Sookie's shoulder.

"What would you have done?" Sookie asked, pulling away and curling a wavy strand of Isabella's hair around her ear. "A vampire attacked her."

"You know that for sure?" Isabella asked, her eyes narrowing. Sookie nodded, anticipating Isabella's hatred for vampires to bubble to the surface. "But … _why_? Why Tara? Was it Logan? What does he want with her?"

"We don't know, Izzy," Sookie said earnestly, squeezing her hand to attempt to comfort her. "Whoever it was … fed on her, and then glamoured her." Sookie's voice momentarily quavered as she thought of Tara being hurt. "And besides, who's to say that Tara was attacked just because _you_ hate vampires? The two things aren't really related. You need to stop blaming yourself."

Isabella looked to the floor, as if her eyes were undeserving of Sookie's sweetness. "Can I see her?" she asked quietly, nodding her head toward Tara's bedroom door. "I just need to make sure she's okay." Sookie nodded and gave her friend's hand a final squeeze.

Isabella sighed before opening the door to Tara's room. Her feet were quiet as they tiptoed onto the carpet, and she tried to maintain that silence as she shut the door, blocking out the rogue sliver of light from the hallway.

Even though the first rays of sunlight were dripping into the room, Isabella needed a moment to allow her eyes to adjust to the dark space. But within seconds, her eyes found Tara sleeping peacefully in her bed, a white sheet covering her so she looked like a satin angel. She had never looked so beautiful. Any light that had slipped into the room was drawn to her body, hovering above her in a magnetized halo.

"Tara?" Isabella said softly, ashamed by her own voice as it broke the peaceful silence. She didn't stir, so Isabella slipped to the side of her bed and knelt on the floor beside her. Even though she knew Eric's vampire blood was causing Tara's glow, she couldn't help but smile. Despite being bloody and unconscious just hours ago, she was flawless now, her skin smooth and shimmering with life.

Isabella reached out to touch Tara's hand, and as soon as their hands connected, Tara's eyes shot open, a gasp leaving her lips. Isabella jumped in surprise and fell backward as if she shared Tara's jolt.

"Jesus fuckin' Christ," Tara gasped, her eyes scanning the room to regain her grasp on reality. She met Isabella's eyes, her own orbs wide in shock.

"It's just me, Tara. I'm sorry if I scared you. I'm really sorry." Isabella rose and sat on the bed beside Tara, holding her hand in her lap.

"No, I'm glad you woke me up," Tara told her, adjusting her position in the bed to sit up, her eyes closing as she rubbed her forehead. "I've been having non-stop, nasty-ass sex dreams about that fucking vampire."

Isabella couldn't stop the outburst of laughter that left her mouth, but she immediately stopped when she saw the angry expression on Tara's face.

"I'm sorry, Tara. I'm not laughing at you, I promise," she said sincerely. "I just … when I found you before …" Isabella started laughing again, but tears began to stream from her eyes. All of the strength Isabella had been trying to show suddenly crumbled, and it was bursting through her body in the form of a hysterical mix of laughter and tears.

"When I found you, and you were just lying there on the ground, all beaten up and unconscious, I tried to help you. Y'know, like, mouth-to-mouth. I didn't think you were breathing. But in doing that," she continued, a fresh outburst of laughter and tears pouring from her, "I totally swallowed some of the vampire blood that Eric fed you."

Tara's expression softened as she watched Isabella's breakdown. She chose to remain silent and listen to Isabella's emotions flood out.

"So I'm having the nasty-ass sex dreams, too." Isabella met Tara's caramel-colored eyes and tried to force a natural smile. She was oddly comforted by Tara's silence, and she took a deep breath, her hysterics finally beginning to subside. "I'm so sorry I didn't get there sooner to help you," Isabella told her. "It's my fault, and I just had to apologize," she said, sniffing.

"Why in the hell do you think this was your fault? A vampire attacked me and corrupted my mothah fuckin' mind so I couldn't remember any of it. A _vampire_. Not you. And yea, I'm fuckin' pissed off. But none of that is your fault. And you were a good person to try and help me, even if you're in here freakin' out like a crazy person in my bed."

Isabella laughed again, this time naturally. She sniffed and wrapped her arms around Tara for a tight hug. "I'm really sorry all this happened to you. And I'm sorry you got hurt."

Tara squeezed her back. "I've been through some nasty shit in my life. Tonight mighta been weird, but it didn't take the shit cake."

Isabella smiled and pulled away from the embrace. "You're okay though, right?"

"I feel fine. That ain't the problem. But I am worried about having all this V in me. And what that vamp sheriff is gonna do about it. You think he'll want something from me?"

"I don't know." Isabella hated saying that to Tara, but it was the truth. What if Eric did want some sort of payment for giving her his blood to save her life? After all, he was only helping Isabella find Logan for a price. "But if it comes to that, we'll all be ready to help you."

Tara slowly nodded, staring blankly at the wall beyond Isabella's head. She didn't seem entirely pleased with Isabella's response, as it confirmed her worries that Eric only helped her for something in return. "Fuck that," she muttered, her eyes fluttering to meet Isabella's.

Isabella tried to pass along an encouraging smile as she watched Tara's eyes convey the swirl of emotions and thoughts tumbling around inside her head. Tara finally caved in to the stress and sunk into the bed, the pillows snuggling around her arms.

"Anything I can do, you let me know," Isabella told her quietly, pulling the angelic white sheet up to Tara's stomach as she settled into a comfortable position.

Tara remained silent, prompting Isabella to lightly pat Tara's arm and stand up from the bed to leave her friend to rest. She glided to the door and opened it, and Tara's voice broke through the stillness from the bed.

"Maybe some whole cakes in a few hours."

Isabella grinned as she turned around to face her friend from the doorway. "You got it."

Feeling both relieved and thankful that Tara was safe, albeit worried, Isabella tiptoed to her room to change into a black tank top and white shorts before returning barefoot to the first floor.

Both Jason and Lafayette met her eyes as she walked into the living room and plopped down between them on the couch.

"How's she doin'?" Jason asked her, his head nodding toward the stairs.

"Okay, I guess. I mean, she's fine physically. But knowing that a vampire like Eric could be holding something over your head like that … sucks. It really sucks." Isabella felt her stomach tighten when she realized Tara's feelings very much mirrored her own. The emotion flooded through her body, and she felt her eyes begin to well up with unwanted tears. She hugged her arms to her chest and lowered her head in a meaningless attempt to hide her face.

Jason shot a curious glance at Lafayette, then put an arm around Isabella's shoulder. "Are you … are you cryin'?" he asked, lowering his head to try a sneak a glance at Isabella's face.

"Yes, for like, the fifth time in the past twenty-four hours!" she replied with frustration, wiping the tears from her face before letting her hand drop into her lap.

"Girl, you need a good dose of narcotics to knock that shit off," Lafayette said, using his humor to attempt to snap her out of her crying spell.

Isabella didn't even crack a smile. Instead, her body responded to Jason. His hand felt warm and comforting on her shoulder, and in a moment of complete weakness, she looked up to meet Jason's eyes. With little effort, Isabella used _Ipnotizzare_, her vulnerable, glistening eyes reaching out to summon Jason's affection.

Her mind flashed to her first night in Bon Temps and how she used _Ipnotizzare_ on Jason so easily. How his expression had changed in an instant as her ocular power swept through his senses to lure him to do and act exactly how she wanted.

In the present, Jason's features immediately softened, and he pulled Isabella into his body for the tight, comforting embrace she craved. "Don't cry, darlin'," he said softly, his hands running up and down her back in a steady rhythm.

"Jason fuckin' Stackhouse. Now ain't the time to try and seduce the girl," Lafayette interjected. A hint of a grin tugged at Isabella's lips as she snuggled into Jason's chest, her hand resting on his trim, muscular waist.

She stole a glance at Lafayette, the power of _Ipnotizzare_ still flowing from her eyes. In an instant, she watched Lafayette's expression soften, the power of the swirling blue ribbons of light enveloping his mind.

"No more teardrops, baby girl. Tara's okay, and you're okay." His voice was suddenly like sweet caramel as the words dripped from his mouth. His hand ran through her brown locks, sending a shockwave of comfort down her spine.

"Y'all want some tea?" Sookie's presence made the three of them look up.

Isabella met her kind face and soft smile, and felt naturally soothed as Sookie gently placed her hand on the side of Isabella's head near her temple. Isabella watched as the blue, hypnotizing waves twirled through the air to trickle into Sookie's mind next.

But the reaction was not what she expected.

Instead of feeling the ease of the delicate power over Sookie's mind, she felt what seemed like a zap of electricity penetrate her mind from Sookie's hand. In an instant, she saw darkness, and then light, and then a vision of Merlotte's disappearing beneath her as she soared higher and higher into the night sky.

Another jolt to her mind ended the vision and sent her tumbling to the floor.


End file.
